Nameksei: Before Freezer
by Cremrock
Summary: I wrote this some time ago, but it hasn't really seen the light of day in many places... it Revolves around Dende, Neru, and events that may have happened on Nameksei, well, before Freezer came.
1.

Nameksei: Before Freezer Chapter 1

Nameksei: Before Freezer

Chapter 1

**By Cremrock**

Slowly, the sun dipped down below the mountains, it's golden hue diminishing. Not that it mattered. There was still the main one beating overhead. Any sensible Nameksei-jin would normally be resting at this time. The sun was the hottest in the area at this time, and when you live on a planet with no night, well, everyone had to sleep sometime, and that time was now. Near Nameksei's second village, one Nameksei-jin wasn't quietly dozing, however. Instead, he was in the hottest part of the area, a low valley with very little shade. And he wasn't resting or even trying to relax. He was training.

"HHHHAAAAAAAAAAA!"

A Nameksei-jin scream echoed throughout the valley, even as the energy that exploded from his open palm sheared large chunks off of an old boulder crisscrossed with scorch marks. Finally, the boulder was unable to take the stress and exploded, showering a dusty black garment lying on the ground with jagged chunks of rock. The Nameksei-jin warrior frowned, as huge drops of sweat trickled down his forehead. He glanced from left to right at the eight other boulders, each one about six feet tall, arranged around him. He inhaled deeply, preparing himself for the next section of his exercises today. His antennae flopped downwards a bit as his eyes narrowed. Then, in a blinding flash, he was off. The boulder to the immediate left of his field of vision shattered with a powerful side kick of his left leg, the sound resounding through the valley. Scarcely pausing at all, the warrior pivoted with his right leg and brought the heel of his left foot down on the next boulder to the left. The two rocks on the right met a similar fate at the hands of the warrior's right leg. The Nameksei-jin then tensed and back flipped over the four rocks behind him, landing behind them and immediately bringing both fists down on one of them, then slashing outwards with open palms, as if his hands were blades. As the first boulder crumpled into pieces the slashing hands sheared the two rocks to the left and right of it into two equal halves. He stretched as he glared at the final boulder. Inhaling deeply, he opened his mouth wide, screaming. The sound of the final boulder shattering paled in comparison to the force of the Nameksei-jin's shout. He turned and scowled at the ruined rocks around him. Nameksei's main star continued to beat down overhead. The relentless trainer narrowed his eyes, glancing across the valley. His arms and legs had finally begin to throb with pain from the boulders and exhaustion from the heat, but he hardly noticed. It was why he was who he was, the best.

"And they wonder why I can fight so much better than the others." The Nameksei-jin remarked. It wasn't because he was special, it was because he worked his rear end off, and knew his duty. It wasn't because he liked to fight, although he had to admit he did enjoy it, which was rather surprising for a peaceful race like the Nameksei-jin. It was because someday, sometime, the Saichoro, Nameksei, or its people might be in danger, and the Nameksei-jin warrior was determined to protect it. That day would hopefully never come, but if it ever did, he knew he would be as ready as he could make himself. His ears perked up as he heard a distant shout. He glanced at the horizon, spying a tiny dot slowly but steadily running towards him.

"Not again…" He muttered sadly, although a twinge of joy could also be detected in his voice.

About 300 yards away, the Nameksei-jin child's loose robes fluttered in the dusty wind. His short antennae were practically plastered to his forehead, which was drenched with sweat, caused mainly by the heat, but also by the large bucket the child was struggling to carry, while still running as fast as his tiny three year old legs could carry him. His maroon colored vest fluttered behind him. The child didn't care though, a smile stretching upwards on the sides of his face. He had finally sighted his destination, and knew he would be at his goal soon.

"Neru!" The child shouted happily. The older Nameksei-jin squinted at him, scooping up his dusty robe from the ground and using it to wipe his forehead before tossing it over his shoulders. He smiled as the child approached, despite his reaction upon seeing the child on the horizon. By now the child had slowed to a walk, his care for keeping the bucket from tipping over outweighing his urge to dash the rest of the way, now that he was near his goal. Neru began walking towards the child, even as the child eased the bucket down and toppled over in an effort to catch his breath. By the time he felt like he could move again, he was laying in the shadow produced by his taller sibling, who was wearing a small expression of concern that widened back into a smile when he recognized the child's bright eyes staring up at him in joy and awe.

Still smiling even while shaking his head, Neru admonished,

"Now Dende, I know you like to help me out when I go training, but I thought I'd explained to you the dangers of a young Nameksei-jin going out in this heat." He smiled as he extended one sweat covered, green skinned hand. Dende grasped it, and the taller Nameksei-jin pulled the child up with about as much effort as lifting a twig.

Dende's adorable three year old grin widened as he gazed at his idol, his tiny voice responding.

"But Neru, it's so hot out today! I felt sorry for you, so I figured someone should bring you a drink!" Dende indicated the bucket, filled with clear water. Neru grinned, and bent down to pick up the bucket. He took a small sip and sputtered, yanking the bucket free from his face to glance at Dende with an expression of disbelief. For a brief moment the child's face fell, as he thought he might have done something wrong. Neru caught onto this and quickly grinned, as disappointing the child had not been his intent.

"Dende! Not only did you walk all the way out here in this heat, but you went to the far side of the village to get the best water too?" The child glanced up and nodded, his smile rapidly returning. Neru stared at him for a moment. "Thanks a lot, Dende! Now here, you take a drink, I don't want to explain to Muuri how you sneaked away and walked here all this way in the heat before passing out!" Neru leaned down and handed the bucket back to Dende, who clutched it awkwardly with both hands and took a long sip, even while spilling some of it, saturating the front of his robe.

The Nameksei-jin child wiped the area around his mouth with one sleeve, and offered the water back to Neru, who took another drink. Dende loved to help out Neru. Indeed, when it wasn't the dry season and hadn't been quite so hot, Dende practically followed Neru around wherever he went. Right now, the only thoughts running through Dende's mind were, __"I did it, I helped out Neru all by myself!"

Neru tilted his head, acknowledging Dende again.

"So Dende, just how did you find me? I could have sworn everyone was asleep when I left the village, and as you know I don't commonly announce to everyone where I'm going." Neru said warily. Dende giggled, clasping his two tiny hands over his mouth.

"I wanted to surprise you, so I pretended to be asleep. It was easy to sneak out of the village, but not so easy to sneak out of the house." He remarked brightly. Neru nodded, thinking that next time he'd better check and make sure everyone was asleep before leaving. He didn't want to worry Dende, but he was concerned for the child's safety, and not primarily because of the heat. Dinosaurs roamed some areas around the village, and he didn't like the idea of one finding itself a tiny Nameksei-jin snack. Granted, he knew that the dragonballs could bring the child back from the dead, but it wasn't something to be taken lightly.

The last time the dragonballs had ever been used had been twenty years ago, during that awful time when the Saichoro's eighty-seventh child had tragically fallen off that cliff. Neru regretted that day, partly because he wished he had been in the area watching the child, and partly because of the feeling of helplessness he had felt at being unable to comfort the Saichoro. He remembered the details vividly. One moment, he was talking with the Saichoro peacefully, and the next… the look of horror on the elder Nameksei-jin's face had been stunning, as the Saichoro informed Neru that one of his children had died. The sadness in the Saichoro's tone had been so sorrowful that Neru had shed tears himself, despite the rational knowledge that the child would soon be back. Neru pushed the depressing thought out of his mind. That had been long ago, and it didn't matter now. It was in the past. He noticed Dende staring up at him, his smile diminishing slightly. Neru mentally kicked himself, as he had probably taken on a sad expression at those thoughts without even realizing it.

"Oh yes, that's right, isn't Muuri taking care of that little brother of ours?" Neru asked, mostly so the child wouldn't pick up on Neru's sudden soberness. Dende nodded.

"Yes, the elders decided that Muuri would be taking care of Kargo, since I'm the only other child he's watching. He still won't let me hold him though, he says I'm not old enough." Neru shrugged, his strict mental and physical training already doing its part to keep him from thinking about the tragedy again.

"Don't worry about it Dende, I know you wouldn't do anything to hurt the lil' guy. You probably just need to grow a bit. You'll be allowed to hold baby Nameksei-jin eventually…" Neru grinned before continuing. "Anyway, I'd better take you back to the village. It's still hot out, and you could probably use a nap if you haven't gotten any sleep yet." Dende glanced down at the ground.

"But Neru… I'm not," Dende tried very hard to suppress it, but suddenly yawned. Neru chuckled.

"Come on Dende, I'll give you a ride on my shoulders!" He said, laughing.

"Wow! Really?" Dende exclaimed, beaming. Neru nodded, his two antennae dancing up and down in the air in conjunction with his forehead.

"If he thinks riding on my shoulders is fun, that kid's going to be in for a shock when I teach him how to fly!" Neru thought. He leaned down and picked Dende up, who giggled as Neru flipped him upside down once as he eased him onto his shoulders. Neru's antennae swayed gently in a refreshing, cool breeze. He glanced up.

"Ready?" He asked, already knowing the answer.

"Yeah!" Dende exclaimed. Neru started walking back towards the village slowly. Dende giggled and chatted with Neru about how the water had tasted and what he had done with the other children lately for about five minutes. Then his voice slowly died down. Neru's eyes widened in concern as Dende went limp on his back, but he calmed down a second later when he heard the child's quiet snore. Not wanting to expose the child to the searing heat any further, Neru shifted Dende around so that he was holding him more securely in his arms. A moment later, a small cloud of dust surrounded Neru as he floated into the air. He started flying towards the village slowly, a quiet breeze whipping around the two of them. Neru glanced down at the sleeping Dende.

"I swear, nothing'll stop that kid when he's determined. It doesn't matter what you'll put in front of him, if he's determined to do something he's going to do it, whether you tell him to stay at home or not." Neru thought.

He smiled, recalling the first time Dende's determination had shown through. The elders from the six villages had gone to consult with the Saichoro about the Ajissa harvest that season. As was his custom, Neru was present with the Saichoro and the elders. He only did it so the Saichoro would know that he would always be there to protect him. The Nameksei-jin race was peaceful. No one would have ever dreamed of harming the Saichoro or one of their brothers. After all, he was their father. At any rate, Dende was about two years old and had just learned to talk, albeit poorly. Typical Nameksei-jin children didn't have to rely on their parent or in these cases their brother, for long. They still lacked mental maturity at a young age, but they didn't need to be held all the time, in fact, Dende had begun walking around quite a bit at that age. After the meeting, Dende was going to meet his father, the Saichoro. Of course he had seen him before, but Neru and the others assumed he was so excited because he had been too young to remember the previous times. Muuri had been discussing which Ajissa plants had to be transplanted to a better field when there was a strange rapping on the door. A moment later, to the surprise of everyone in the room, Dende toddled in. His clothes had huge tears in them, his hands were covered in dirt, and a minor gash was bleeding just slightly above his left eye. He glanced up at the Saichoro in awe and had smiled widely before rocking back on his heels and passing out due to exhaustion. Afterwards, Muuri gently scolded him, because although the elders all agreed that climbing the rock spire on which the building sat was an incredible thing for a child to do, it had been very high up, and the cut on Dende's head was evident. Clearly he had gotten lucky, because a fall just might have caused the child to lose his life. Apparently he had sneaked away from the Nameksei-jin who had been watching him when he had begun his climb. Still, that had been enough to impress Neru. He had always had a soft spot for Dende, but then again that had been a fond memory as well.

There was some ancient Nameksei-jin tradition that the first person a Nameksei-jin looked at immediately after hatching would be a close friend for life. Neru had been present when Dende had been hatched, and had been very surprised when Dende had gazed at him. Muuri had also been present at that hatching, and had told Neru to hold their newest brother. Neru had made an effort to become better with children after that. Still, he had to admit that during his life some of the Nameksei-jin children had been afraid of him. He wasn't sure if it was just the fact that he wielded tremendous power compared to some Nameksei-jin, or if it was because he was a fighter type. Dende never seemed to mind though.

Neru snapped out of his thoughts as he neared the village. He landed softly in the center of the village, for most of the Nameksei-jin were still asleep. He ducked into Muuri's home, and glanced at the table, where the elder Nameksei-jin was quietly dozing, holding baby Kargo. He briefly checked the baby, in case Muuri's lack of attention was harming the child in some way, but the baby was warm and safe in Muuri's arms, his tiny chest rising and falling as he slept. Neru walked over to Dende's tiny bed, and eased the child down gently. He began to walk out of the hut, and glanced back at Dende, whose eyes were still shut tight. Neru smiled slightly, reaching down and tousling the child's antennae slightly before turning back towards the door.

"Thanks for the water kid," He mumbled softly, stepping back outside. His workout had gone well, and though he had tested himself and the aching in his body had confirmed his knowledge that he had trained hard, he knew he was far from invincible, and although he would never let on to anyone else, the heat had indeed been draining. It was time for a nap of his own.


	2. 

Nameksei: Before Freezer Chapter 2

Nameksei-Before Freezer

Chapter 2

By Cremrock

Slowly, throughout the cold, lifeless void of space, a tiny spaceship thrust through the blackness like a dagger. The ship was symmetrical, and had it been in top condition, it would have almost looked frightening. Instead the ring like interior section had several gaping holes, easily noticeable by the clear mist of oxygen billowing out into space. Most of the blue and yellow domes around the outside of the ship were destroyed or cracked, and where fourteen panels that would normally hold pincer-like legs used to land the ship, only nine remained. Of these nine, only six were properly locked inside, with the other three legs hanging out, the panels and computers housing and controlling them long since destroyed. The main observation dome, on what could be called the front of the ship, had huge cracks in it as well. Inside this dome, two beings struggled for life.

Most of the ship's systems, save for propulsion were either critically damaged, or completely destroyed. The small repairs the two beings had managed to make were serving nothing more then to keep the badly damaged ship going for a few more days. The temperature controls had given up the ghost several days ago, and now rather then simply watch their oxygen supply dwindle, enabling the two to have a somewhat peaceful death in their sleep, they were in danger of freezing to death. They were both skilled fighters, but had been exhausted by their battle weeks ago. With the healing chambers off-line, they had not been able to keep their energy levels up. What little ki they had been able to channel in an effort to warm themselves had long been expended, resorting the two of them to wrapping themselves in any clothing or blankets they could find. They had already moved to the bridge, which fortunately was still the warmest part of the ship. Together, they sat in two chairs side by side, awaiting death.

Suddenly, one of the panels on the bridge lit up, accompanied with a loud alarm. The being on the left chair jumped up with sudden speed, tossing his three blankets aside, which was quite surprising for his weakened state. He was about four feet tall, with an elongated oval shaped head that was more horizontal facing then vertical. Several brown spots along the sides and top of his head accompanied his purple skin. His neck joined more near the front then the back, and two yellow fang-like teeth hung over his lower lip. He was attired in a white fighting jacket, which he wore over a dusty black long sleeved shirt. His fighting jacket was type 2, which meant that it had shoulder guards but it didn't have thigh guards and instead stopped at the waist. He had long abandoned the short pants that he would originally be wearing in lieu of long, tight black pants. To finish his outfit, he had on white boots with a protective yellow material around the points of his feet.

The other being scowled at his comrade's enthusiasm, as he had long since decided that they were going to die. He was at least twice as large as his companion, having huge bulky arms and wearing the same fighting jacket, albeit several sizes larger. His skin was pink, and he had a rather lumpy face, with huge purple lips and cold eyes. His head was almost like a rounded lumpy pink triangle, except that it had several spike-like ridges dotted all around, complete with smaller, pointed ears. He looked fat, and some people might have considered him as such, but he was powerful and fairly quick. His huge arms, which were bare, held powerful muscles. His legs were likewise the same, and he was wearing black pants similar to his companion's, and the same boots. Of course, he didn't share his companion's enthusiasm. He considered himself above his companion. His companion was of a lowly race, while one of their Master Freezer's most trusted lieutenants, the great Dodoria, was of the same race as he. In truth, though their relative power was vastly different, they both had their talents.

He thought back to the event two weeks ago. The ship had been damaged severely, and of the original twenty fighters, only two remained. But they had won. Master Freezer had wanted to send the Ginyu Tokusentai, but he would rather die then let that dancing band of idiots prepare that planet for selling. He had volunteered his squad. And they had won. The inhabitants of the planet had been far more powerful then previously expected and they had lost five of their members in the first two hours of landing on the planet. He grinned coldly. Once the planet's fighters had realized they couldn't win, they had blasted away at the ship in a vain effort to stop the invaders. And it had almost succeeded. But not quite. He and his companion had taken particular satisfaction in slaughtering the innocents of that planet. He was interrupted from these evil thoughts as his companion turned back towards him, grinning.

"Sir! I don't believe it, but we have a chance to survive! I managed to kick the main navigational computer up yesterday, and now it's paying off! There's a ternary solar system about two days away, and there's a planet that can support life in that system, according to this readout! We can land, and even if it takes weeks to fix the ship, we can survive! Isn't that great?" He said, enthusiastically, the jolt of adrenaline providing the first burst of energy he had felt in days. Still sitting in the chair, a blanket around his shoulders, with his massive arms crossed, he scowled.

"What makes you think we can make it there before we die, Ideo? We're low on oxygen and it's getting colder and coler in here. We're probably not going to make it anyway, and even if we do, who says we can even repair the ship when we get there?" He said, icily.

Ideo's eyes narrowed as he smiled evilly.

"I thought of that. But we do have enough oxygen to last that long, and now that we know we'll be on a planet in two days, then we can try and use some of the ship's remaining energy to warm this place up a bit. According to a scouting mission in this area five hundred years ago, this planet is inhabited. The planet had about ten people, and was in such a bad shape that it was never considered for being conquered. But the point is, we believe these people have, or once did have, space travel. With any luck we'll be able to "persuade" them to help us. What do you think, Smetllack?" The pink alien grinned.

"Do it. If we survive, then maybe we'll be able to report back to Master Freezer with news of our victory. At the very least we might get to kill something else before we die." He turned and glanced out at the stars, even while Ideo left to change the ship's trajectory manually, and begin trying to warm the ship. He sighed. He might have to survive two more days of the freezing cold. He started to pull his blanket tighter around himself, then thought better of it. Reaching down, he picked up Ideo's blankets and wrapped them around his massive body for added warmth. With luck, the diminutive alien would never notice they were gone. He smiled, and then, for the first time in weeks, he began to laugh.

Tiptoeing silently around the hut, a cloaked figure glanced around twice, then ducked into the doorway when he was sure no one was looking. He glanced around. It was dark in the house, despite the brilliant light outside, and the figure crouched next to the doorway for a moment, letting his eyes adjust to the darkness. He heard a faint breathing sound, which he assumed was his target snoring. The tall Nameksei-jin was sweating a bit, and his eyes were shut tight. He was most definitely asleep. Under his hood, the figure grinned. He snuck around to the back of the bed, until he was standing over the Nameksei-jin's face. The figure grinned. This was too easy. He reached into his cloak and withdrew his weapon. It was a bit crude, but it would do the job. His cloak parted as he raised his arm high overhead, revealing his green skin and pink Nameksei-jin muscles. Then, chuckling evilly to himself, he raised it one more time with a flourish, savoring his victory. With astonishing speed, another Nameksei-jin arm flew from below and grabbed the figure's arm by the wrist. The figure gasped in surprise. His weapon went clattering to the floor as Neru's eyes flashed open. They narrowed, focusing on the other Nameksei-jin, whose hood had fallen off. Neru scowled. He bent his other hand near the bed and picked up the weapon. A brush, dripping with a blue dye that Neru remembered was so difficult to get out of clothing, or even skin, that it would remain there a week. He smiled slightly, smashed the brush with his hand, and released the other Nameksei-jin's arm. Neru shook his head, and jumped to his feet, as he was not very happy. He whirled and glared at the younger Nameksei-jin, who was about half a foot shorter then he was, with a more oval-shaped head, light green skin, and slightly smaller ears. The Nameksei-jin was wearing what he hoped was a disarming grin.

"Um, gee sorry Neru, I thought this was Muuri's house… really!" The Nameksei-jin said, in his normal, never serious voice. Neru grumbled.

"Karacol, if you'd put half as much time into training as you did with these stupid practical jokes…" Neru began. Karacol focused on nothing in particular, and started lip-syncing the words he knew would be coming next.

"You'd be just as good at fighting as me, I know, you've told me before Neru." Karacol said, finishing. Neru groaned. He didn't like to think of himself as a person who didn't like some people, but Karacol just always rubbed him the wrong way. He was always trying to pull pranks on people, and never seemed to want to train when Neru did, being very lazy. At times, the younger Nameksei-jin was so childlike and irresponsible that he just couldn't believe that by Nameksei-jin standards, Karacol was easily an adult. Neru admitted that he did have fighting potential, and despite his shortcomings, he was arguably the second strongest Nameksei-jin on the planet, but by a wide margin in power. Quite frankly, Neru just didn't like him because he was never serious, and oftentimes didn't think before acting. The older Nameksei-jin glanced down at the ground, speaking in low tones.

"Did you ever think that I might instinctively use deadly force when someone sneaks up on me like that? In combat, you can't afford any mistakes. They might mean your downfall. You're lucky I was able to sense your ki when you came in, or next time you might be lying there on the ground, twitching with a broken neck. Understand?" Karacol rolled his eyes.

"Yeah yeah, I know I know, so do you wanna train or not?" Karacol said bitterly. Neru almost exploded, but held his rage in.

"Do you have any idea where I was earlier when it was nice and hot out?! While you were relaxing in bed, I was training as hard as possible!" He said angrily. Karacol smiled that stupid, disarming smile again.

"Sorry Neru, but I sprained my leg, and it only now just felt better, so I thought I'd better test it. So do you want to go outside and spar or not?" He said questioningly. Neru muttered something under his breath. Karacol didn't pick up on all of it, but it sounded something like, "Yeah, I'll give you a sprained leg you lousy little…" he didn't hear the rest. He made an over-exaggerated sweeping gesture towards the door. Neru reached over and picked up his long vest from a nearby chair. He tugged it on and glanced at the door.

"After you…" He said, smiling just a bit, letting his rage cool. Karacol grinned.

"Oh no, you're the strongest Nameksei-jin, after you." Neru glanced up at the ceiling and started walking out the door. Behind him, Karacol chuckled, having pinned a small piece of paper with Nameksei-jin writing on it to Neru's back. Enscribed on it was, "It's so hot out I can't talk. Someone throw a bucket of water on me, please!" He snickered and followed after the older Nameksei-jin.

Neru smiled, nimbly dodging out of the way of another kick by his opponent, Karacol. Dust scattered up all around them, as Neru dodged another flurry of punches. They were sparring in the village, much to the amazement of a few Nameksei-jin watching. The younger Nameksei-jin's teeth were clenched tight, and he was sweating from his exertions. Neru was sweating slightly, but he had to face the fact that after the practice earlier that day, this just wasn't a challenge. He was still angry, but unless Karacol did anything else to enrage him, he figured he'd be able to control his emotions. By unspoken agreement, neither was using any ki attacks. Neru grudgingly admitted that of all his areas, the one Karacol was somewhat near Neru in skill was in flinging around energy and things like that, but it took far more then that to be a good fighter. Neru believed that a fighter should learn the fundamentals before the advanced techniques. He blocked another punch.

"Look at all the areas he's leaving himself open to attack. He's being far too frenzied in his attack." Neru thought, slightly annoyed. He sighed softly, dodging a high kick. It was time to illustrate that point.

"Karacol, you're being far too offensive with this attack! The best defense isn't always a good offense, you're so undefended at some points!" He yelled. Karacol grinned, launching into another flurry of kicks and punches, which Neru continued parrying.

"You're just finally giving way to my assault, so you're trying to keep from finally getting beaten by me! Admit it, Neru!" Karacol said, with a smug tone in his voice. Neru's eyes narrowed. He hated to do it, but it was time to teach his student another lesson.

"This is going to hurt him a lot more then it hurts me," He thought. Karacol lunged at him with another kick. Neru ducked under it with blinding speed, rolled out of the way of one of Karacol's punches, and before the other Nameksei-jin could react, firmly planted a fairly weak kick by his standards. It achieved the desired effect, landing on Karacol's unprotected side, right in the Nameksei-jin equivalent of the solar plexus. Karacol let out one quick scream of pain that died abruptly as he slumped to the ground in a cloud of dust, the wind knocked out of him.

Neru scoffed, walked up and stood over Karacol, who was still trying to breathe normally. He extended a hand to help the other Nameksei-jin up. Somehow, gasping for air, Karacol managed to grin. Neru raised an eye ridge in disbelief.

"What the heck is he smiling abo…"

With a tremendous splash, Neru suddenly felt himself dripping wet. He growled in anger and spun around to face a large Nameksei-jin, wearing no top, who was holding an empty bucket of water and staring at Neru with wide eyes and a dumb, unintelligent grin.

"Hey Neru! Did I save you? Can you talk again?" The brawny Nameksei-jin asked. Neru glared.

"Just what the heck did you do that for?!" Neru demanded. The brawny Nameksei-jin, whose name was Tulapas, scratched his head, staring at Neru quizzically. He wasn't the brightest Nameksei-jin in the bunch, and was fervently trying to think of a reason why Neru was mad at him.

"Um… Neru… there's a… sign on your back. It told me to throw water on you because you couldn't talk… are you okay now?" Neru blinked at Tulapas, and scratched his head. Water dripped off the tips of his antennae. He heard chuckling behind him, and didn't need to turn around to know who it was. Still lying on the ground, Karacol was laughing his head off. Neru reached behind his back and felt around for the note that he knew had to be there. He tore it off with a small shred of his own vest, and squinted at the note. The dye used to imprint the note was running, but Neru was able to make out the words. And more importantly, whose handwriting they were in. He spun around, his eyes practically ablaze with fire. Karacol gulped. Neru cracked his knuckles.

"Real funny, eh? Always playing those tricks on ol' Neru, are you? Well, I'm sick of it." He started walking towards Karacol, who gulped. He started scrambling backwards on his hands and feet, until his back came in contact with the wall of a nearby hut. He groaned. Neru advanced, his face set in stone. Karacol got on his knees, begging.

"AHH! Neru, don't hurt me too much, I didn't mean too! Please don't…" Karacol's voice cut off to a whimper as Neru pulled his right arm back. Vainly waiting for the punch he knew was coming, Karacol shut his eyes tight. Nothing came. A few more seconds. Still nothing. He opened one eye slightly…

…And immediately felt a rush of coldness as Neru threw a bucket of water in his face. Karacol accidentally swallowed some of the water in his mouth and started choking. Neru glared at Karacol in contempt. He threw the bucket down so hard that it landed in the dirt with a thud.

There was an awkward silence, during which Karacol still wasn't sure if Neru was about to tear him apart. Finally, he let out a sigh of relief as Neru smirked.

"Not so fun, now is it Karacol? Perhaps next time you'll think before you pull another trick. And Tulapas," He turned and glanced at the brawny Nameksei-jin, who was still trying to comprehend what was going on. Neru grinned wider. "If you see any signs on someone's back, don't do what they say, okay?" Neru said. Tulapas smiled dumbly and nodded, although he obviously still had little idea what Neru was talking about. Neru shrugged. He glanced at Karacol one last time.

"I think you've had enough training for one day. I'm going to go teach someone who would like to learn something from me." Neru finished, and started walking in the direction of Muuri's hut. Karacol groaned, as his side still hurt a bit. As Neru walked off into the distance, one final piercing yell echoed across the village.

"HEY NERU! COME BACK! YOU FORGOT YOUR NOTE!" Tulapas yelled to the departing Neru, waving a wet piece of paper in one massive hand. Karacol glanced up at the bright green sky, and slapped himself in the forehead.


	3. 

Nameksei-Before Freezer Chapter 3

Nameksei-Before Freezer

Chapter 3

By Cremrock

Muuri awoke to the sounds of someone tapping on the door to his hut. He was about to open his mouth to yell out for whoever was there to come in, but stopped short as a tiny snore reminded him that Kargo was still asleep in his arms. The tiny Nameksei-jin baby had wrapped two tiny fists around Muuri's left thumb, the Nameksei-jin's palm supporting the child's head. His right hand cradled the rest of the baby's body. One antenna inched upwards, a habit that Muuri often did when he was debating a course of action. He twisted his neck in an effort to see if Dende was awake, but on the other side of the room, in his own bed, the child was fast asleep. Muuri sighed. He could get up and risk waking Kargo, who had been very fussy and had taken an hour to coax to sleep, he could try yelling at the door and risk waking up Kargo, he groaned softly. Virtually every option had a chance of waking up the baby. Just as Muuri was about to give up and wait for whoever was there to go away, the last fog of sleep lifted from his mind, and he remembered that besides being the elder of this Nameksei-jin village, he was telepathic. He narrowed his eyes, quirked one antenna, and concentrated on the space outside of his hut. He couldn't identify the Nameksei-jin outside by just feeling the presence there, but according to the ki he sensed it was the warrior Nameksei-jin, Neru.

"Come in, Neru."  He thought. A moment later the door hovered open and Neru stepped in. Muuri looked the younger Nameksei-jin up and down. He was covered in dust yet his clothing had a slightly darker, damp looking hue. He grinned.

"Greetings, Neru. What is it that brings you here, brother?" Muuri asked pointedly. Neru smiled.

"I just finished training with Karacol. At any rate, it was slightly more…" Neru glanced down at his wet clothes. "…Bothersome then others, and I was getting angry enough to do some real damage, so I figured I'd better cool off a bit. Is Dende awake? I'd like to see him." Neru finished. Muuri nodded, taking in Neru's words even while shifting the snoring Kargo expertly to one large hand and cupping the other around his chin. The elder glanced behind his shoulder, where Dende was still lying in his bed.

"Sorry Neru, but he appears to be asleep right now. What time is it anyway?" Muuri asked. Neru nodded, while thinking a moment.

"Well, the village crystal said that it was about time for the third star to appear on the west horizon." Neru said, after thinking a bit.

Nameksei had no night, so it was hard for them to tell time the way some planets told time, but there was a crystal in the center of each village, a sort of Nameksei-jin sundial. The third sun rising usually meant it was about when the late rising Nameksei-jin would get up, as it was the coolest at this time. Every time the third sun passed out of view was considered a rotation, the Nameksei-jin equivalent of a day. Muuri nodded.

"Well, I'd imagine Dende will be waking up soon, want to stay a bit? Would you like some water?" Muuri offered. Neru shrugged.

"Only if it's not much trouble, Muuri. Want me to hold Kargo?" Neru replied. Muuri nodded, and gingerly handed the child to Neru, who gently took him and let him rest on his shoulder. Through all this, Kargo remained asleep. Muuri got up and crossed the room to a shelf, where several clay pots and jugs were. He reached for a brown earth colored clay glass, and a light yellow jug, which jostled with the sound of water when he shook it slightly. He set both on the table next to his seat and tilted the jug, pouring water in the glass. He was about to slide the glass towards Neru, then thought better of it and kept the glass for himself, sliding the much larger jug to the younger Nameksei-jin instead. Neru chuckled, even while Muuri took a sip from the glass he had poured himself.

Neru took a large gulp from the jug, clutching it in one of his massive hands. He put it back down on the table and looked at Muuri. "Thanks a lot. So what's been going on lately? I'm afraid I haven't kept up to date… I've been doing some extensive training lately…" Neru admitted. Muuri shrugged, resting one hand on the table.

"Well… There hasn't been much going on lately… The water's plentiful, although those Ajissas aren't blooming quite as well as I would've thought by now… I haven't received any requests, so I really haven't had to change anything that wouldn't normally be going on… Did you know that the revival festival is coming up soon?" Muuri asked. Neru's antennae stood straight up, a Nameksei-jin expression of shock. He gulped, shifting Kargo around.

"Really? I didn't think it was so soon… I guess I've lost track of time lately…" Neru said, trying to conceal his shock. Muuri chuckled.

"Well, I thought I should tell you. In fact, it's in about two rotations. After all, you wouldn't want to miss it when you're on one of your training expeditions, would you?" Muuri said, chuckling. Neru nodded. At times, he often went away from all villages for several rotations. The training benefits were obvious. He could train as hard as he wanted, and since he often went to far off, desolate places, he didn't have to worry about any other Nameksei-jin people accidentally being harmed by one of his ki blasts, as he tended to go all out on these expeditions. Well, that, and if he was going to try a new technique, he didn't want to have to face the embarrassment of walking in with a burned hand or a broken leg if he messed up somehow. Although Muuri continued talking, Neru scarcely heard him as his thoughts turned to the revival festival. It was a very special occasion on Nameksei, as it only happened once every twenty years. (Note: Normal, solar years, and not Nameksei-jin years.)

He still remembered how… interesting the first one he had ever attended had been.

Nameksei-jin had interesting ways of celebrating, especially since the festival stood for the time when

Nameksei had been recovering from the weather cataclysms. Mostly, Neru recalled, it stood for several things. Hope for the future, when Nameksei would be covered in Ajissa's and be beautiful again, and in memorium for the long forgotten Nameksei-jin. The high point was when the Saichoro himself would gather all the Nameksei-jin around and tell many stories about the Nameksei-jin before the cataclysm.

A small twinge of sadness entered Neru's thoughts.

"This might be his last festival… he's lost a lot of strength in the past few years…" Neru murmured softly. Muuri looked startled, and Neru realized he had spoken loud enough for the elder to hear. The conversation ground to an abrupt halt, as Neru and Muuri glanced at each other with sad eyes. By unspoken agreement, neither said a word about the Saichoro's health, and a moment later Muuri continued chatting about day to day matters. This time, Neru paid closer attention. A few minutes later Muuri changed the subject.

"So Neru, what do you want to see Dende for anyway?" Muuri requested. Neru glanced down at Kargo, still snoring, and grinned.

"Well elder… with your permission, I'd like to see him and…" Neru gulped, as he knew this might be a bit of a shock to Muuri. He tried to maintain a slightly more serious expression. "…Start teaching him how to fly. Muuri scratched his head as his eyes widened. Dende was his responsibility, but Neru did give him an opportunity to think on something that had been nagging him the past two months…

After a long silence, during which Neru quickly went from thinking of the best way to teach Dende how to fly to thinking of the best way to convince Muuri to let Dende learn to fly, Muuri nodded slowly.

"Well… I guess it'd be okay… Are you sure he's ready?" Muuri asked, in a concerned tone. Neru shrugged.

"You know how Dende is… he's pretty smart, he's certainly got willpower, and he's old enough now… Would you object to this course of action?" Neru asked, shifting Kargo from one arm to the other. Muuri sipped his water, quietly spinning all the details in his mind.

"Well, I still feel a bit worried, but I know you wouldn't let anything happen to him." Muuri said. He grinned, trying to lighten the moment. "And if you don't teach him, how do I know someone like Tulapas isn't going to try and wind up teaching him how to fly upside down?" Neru chuckled.

"True, he probably would…" Neru responded with a grin. Muuri nodded.

"This might be a good test anyhow…" Muuri's voice trailed off. Neru's antennae perked up slightly.

"Test? What do you mean? I never really thought of a child learning how to fly as being a test…" Neru said. Muuri glanced at his glass and shook his head slowly. He glanced up at Neru and smiled.

"I'll be honest with you Neru, I've been feeling my age a bit these past few years… and I've been thinking a lot… Well, the truth is I just don't think I can handle watching two growing Nameksei-jin children. I was wondering if you might be interested in…" Neru's eyes widened, although whether in joy or shock, Muuri couldn't tell.

"…Taking care of Dende…" Neru finished softly, his voice barely above a whisper. Muuri nodded sagely.

"He looks up to you more then any other Nameksei-jin. You're also pretty young, and I think he would benefit more from you being his guardian then me. Still, I want to make sure that I'd be doing what's best for Dende, and I'm not sure how you'd feel about it… Not to mention you'd probably have to tone down your training a bit…" Neru stared at Muuri, a million thoughts going through his mind.

"Forgive me, brother, but do you really think that I would be a good choice? Don't get me wrong, I love Dende, he's probably my most well loved brother, but… I have a duty to the Saichoro…" Neru said. He was still taken slightly aback by the way the conversation was going. Fortunately, Muuri understood.

"Don't worry Neru, no one says you have to decide right away. Heck, I might wake up tomorrow and find myself full of energy and more then ready to handle two children. I just felt I should tell you so you could think about it." Unable to muster a response, Neru nodded slowly. A small sound echoed to the left, and they both looked left, where a sleepy looking Dende was leaning again the arch of his room, staring at the two of them with tired eyes. Neru and Muuri's eyes widened in shock, but Dende didn't appear as if he had heard anything. He appeared to wake up a bit more when he recognized Neru, though. And his expression changed to a sleepy smile.

"Neru! What are you doing here? What are the two of you talking about, anyway?" Dende said quickly, rattling off one question after another before either adult had the chance to respond. Neru grinned.

"Slow down, Dende. Um…" Neru glanced at Muuri, who shook his head. "…We were just talking about the Ajissa plants, Dende." Neru finished hastily. He didn't want to lie to Dende, but he didn't want to get the child's hopes up, as it would take awhile to decide something as lifestyle changing as being Dende's guardian.

Muuri grinned and offered Dende a glass of water. "Well Dende, Neru was wondering if you'd like to have some lessons with him. You see…"

Karacol was trotting around the village, a grin etched on his face in remembrance of the trick he had played on Neru. He overheard talking going on from a window outside Muuri's house. He grinned.

"Doesn't hurt to keep my ears open, I wonder what's up?" Karacol thought slyly. He crept over to Muuri's window and sat down just below it.

"…So anyway Dende, would you like me to go and take you with me for awhile? I want to teach you how to fly…" That was Neru's voice.

"WOW! REALLY? CAN I GO, HUH? PLEASE?!" Karacol smirked. Unless Muuri had suddenly woke up with a high pitched voice and had forgotten how to fly, that was an excited Dende. The next voice was Muuri's.

"Well… I guess since you'll be with Neru, there isn't really much that could happen… You can go Dende. Be sure to listen and do what Neru tells you, though. If you manage to learn enough about it today, I don't want you flying off somewhere. The planet is quite dangerous, even to someone who knows how to fly."

"Okay! Hurry Neru, let's go!" Dende yelled happily.

Karacol slid over to the left of the window and stood up. He grinned.

"I'm sure I can think of something fun to be doing by following Neru and Dende… this could be interesting…"

A few minutes later, the door to Muuri's hut opened, and Neru stepped out alongside Dende. From his vantage point behind a nearby barrel, he saw Neru smile down at Dende, who smiled back with wide eyes.

"Okay Dende, we're going to be going a little ways off so that there aren't any distractions. I'm going to pick you up and I need you to hold on tight, okay?" Dende just emitted a childish happy shriek as he leapt into Neru's arms, which frantically juggled the tiny Nameksei-jin for a moment, struggling to balance him. Finally doing so, Dende wrapped his arms around Neru's neck, Neru wrapped one huge arm securely around Dende's waist, and blasted off into the sky.

Karacol stood up and ran over to where Neru and Dende were. He cursed as he tripped over a bucket that had gotten in the way and hit the ground with a loud crash. Grumbling to himself and dusting his pants off, the Nameksei-jin waited until they were a distant dot on the horizon, focused and suppressed his ki, and began flying after them.

In the hut, Muuri was attempting to console a crying (and very cranky) Kargo, who had just woken up due to the crash coming from outside. Muuri groaned. Being the guardian of children was never an easy task.

As they flew towards the nearby valley, Dende continued to impress Neru. The child had calmly been hanging on to his neck the entire time, but his grip was snug, not clenched or tight. He glanced down at Dende's smiling face, and couldn't help grinning himself. The child trusted him completely. Neru recalled his first experience with flying, and could easily say that he hadn't been nearly that calm. He had been crying and white-knuckling onto the adult Nameksei-jin that had been bringing him to the same spot.

It was without a doubt the best spot on the planet for teaching ki related lessons, at least to children. The reason being, the valley he was taking Dende to was different from the rest of the planet. It was easier to concentrate on one's ki there. None of the Nameksei-jin, with the exception of perhaps the Saichoro, had any idea why the valley was the way it was, but there was no arguing with the results. Neru had learned how to fly there, and probably every Nameksei-jin alive had learned to fly there. Rumors about the valley circulated all over Nameksei, and it was always a popular conversation topic. Neru himself believed that a great battle had taken place there, long before even the Saichoro himself had been born, and that somehow so much ki had been used that it amplified one's sensation to it. He hardly had to concentrate on flying now, but the feeling also meant he was close to the valley.

He spotted it, lush with bluish-green grass growing all around, and ridges circling it, separating it from the rest of Nameksei, unless you were either good at climbing or, like Neru, you could fly. He landed so softly that there was hardly even a thud. Dende jumped out of his arms and giggled. Neru smiled. This definitely was the place. It was time for the lesson to begin.

He beckoned Dende over, who sort of dance walked in the way that only a small child can do gracefully. Neru grinned.

"Okay Dende, now I'm going to start instructing you in what it takes to know how to fly. Can you tell me anything you already know about flying?" Dende glanced up at the sky for a moment, thinking. Nameksei-jin children were often schooled as soon as they were able to talk and think fairly well. Neru wasn't sure if ki had been covered in his lessons yet or not, since there wasn't really a Nameksei-jin structured educational system. Dende smiled at Neru, wanting to impress his idol.

"Isn't it some kind of energy people have or something?" Dende's chime-like voice answered. Neru smiled, impressed that Dende knew even that much, and nodded.

"That's partially correct… you see, it's an energy inside everyone, some more then others, and you can learn to tap or channel it to do things… like this." To Dende's amazement, Neru pointed a single finger at a boulder, and fired a thin ki blast, which bored a smoking hole through the rock. Dende's antennae flew up in amazement as his eyes widened.

"WOW! That was awesome! You never told me you could do something like that, Neru!" Dende exclaimed. Neru shrugged.

"You'd have a difficult time doing that Dende, since you aren't a fighter-type Nameksei-jin. But anyone can learn how to fly… First thing I'm going to teach you is how to sense and focus your ki. Dende looked pained.

"How do I do that?" Dende asked, confused. Neru thought for a moment. Ki control was so easy for him and virtually every other adult Nameksei-jin, so it was a bit difficult to remember his lessons as a child. He smiled, remembering what had worked for him.

"Try to clear your mind, Dende. Focus on nothing. If that doesn't work, pretend you're going to sleep. Remove all distractions from your mind… Pretend I'm not here, pretend nothing's here. You're just floating in space…"

Neru watched Dende's face, as the child sat down cross-legged style and his face contorted, trying to concentrate. Neru couldn't help grinning. That was the wrong way to do it, because the child was focusing on something… getting rid of his thoughts. He didn't interfere though. If he spoke he might disrupt whatever concentration the child had.

"Dende has to find out about this on his own…" Neru thought.__

Dende's face slowly contorted less and less until he was wearing a calm expression about ten minutes later. To Neru, he almost looked as if he was asleep. Neru was surprised.

"Heh, he's almost in a meditative trance. That's not quite what it takes, but he's got the right idea…"

Neru observed longer, as Dende's face got calmer and calmer. Neru grinned. Everyone had their own ki, even if they weren't capable of controlling it yet. And from what he sensed, Dende was just about mustering the slightest bit of control, although he probably didn't even realize it. It was getting focused slightly more every second, until…

Dende's eyes shot open, as the child started panting, his concentration broken. He looked at Neru with wide eyes that showed a hint of fear. Fear of the unknown. When he spoke, his voice was quivering slightly.

"N…Neru! I… felt something… it was… warm? I felt something… a shaking inside me? And then something wobbled… it felt like there was something right in front of me, and lots of different other things were far off… some of them bunched together, but they felt tiny in some way…" Dende trembled, as the sensation had been quite a shock to his system. "What was that? It was scary, Neru!" Dende continued to tremble, as Neru put a reassuring hand on the child's robe-covered shoulder. A light breeze settled around them as Neru spoke.

"Don't worry about it Dende. As a matter of fact, just the very fact that you felt it for a second meant something. The resonation you felt in front of you was I, and the kind that felt far away was the village. The warm feeling you felt was most likely your own Ki… Don't be scared of that feeling, Dende. It can't hurt you."

Dende seemed to relax a bit, but his lip was still trembling, and he was obviously quite scared. He spread open his arms to Neru, looking up at his sensei. Neru glanced down at Dende's eyes, which were beginning to fill with tears. Even with a person he was as close to as Dende, Neru wasn't much into that, being his rough and gruff warrior-type Nameksei-jin self.

"Heck, I'd have to do that a lot if I ever wound up being his guardian… If it'll make him feel better…"

Understanding the universal sign for, "I want a hug!" Neru knelt down and embraced the child in his arms. The lesson could wait for a few minutes.


	4. 

Nameksei: Before Freezer Chapter 4 ****

Nameksei-Before Freezer

Chapter 4

By Cremrock

Karacol watched from afar, stunned as Neru embraced the rattled Dende. The child was almost completely obscured by the much larger warrior's body, but Karacol stared at the two of them in silence, as a single regret filled him. He gazed at the two of them longingly for a few more moments, then turned away. His smirk and mischief at the thought of a future prank had disappeared, as he gazed up into the bright green sky, his antennae swaying gently in the wind. His eyes began to shed silent tears, as his mind echoed with one thought.

"Why?"

He began to think back to that day that he seemed doomed to regret for the rest of his life, one year ago.

_ _

"B…but… I didn't…!" Karacol stammered, his face drooping downward.

"Karacol! You were supposed to be watching Dende! He could have died climbing up to the Saichoro's hut! He didn't get that cut by romping around in the grass! What on Nameksei were you thinking?!" Muuri yelled angrily.

Karacol, 16 years old, Nameksei-jin warrior in training, cowered away from Muuri, who was incredibly furious. The normally calm Nameksei-jin elder had opened up on Karacol with both barrels as soon as they had gotten back to the village. Dende, recovered from his accident although now graced with a huge bandage over his face, was toddling around somewhere in the village.

Karacol stared at Muuri's fire filled eyes, the tears in his own eyes not much of a counter. He couldn't believe the way Muuri was acting, as it was a shock to everything he had learned in the sixteen years he had been raised by the normally placid Nameksei-jin elder.

"But… I was trying… it wasn't MY fault…" Karacol muttered. That was when Muuri exploded in rage.

"THAT'S IT! YOU ARE FORBIDDEN TO GO TO THE NAMEKSEI-JIN FIGHTING TOURNAMENT! YOU'VE GOT TO LEARN SOME RESPONSIBILITY!" Muuri screamed. Karacol gaped. He had been training intently for this tournament, as it had been the only thing he had been talking about for days. It had permeated his thoughts until it meant more to him then almost anything in the world. Karacol stared at Muuri in disbelief, but the elder Nameksei-jin's face was stern. Pain ran through his heart as his dream of doing well in the tournament and impressing the elders was shattered. He turned away. "Karacol! Don't you walk away from me!" Karacol was already beginning to walk away, and for a brief moment Muuri wondered if he had done the right decision. "Karacol? Karacol! Wait!" He reached out, but the sixteen-year-old Nameksei-jin had already ran out the door, ignoring his guardian.

For how long, he didn't know, as he sat in a small hollow he had found last year, silently sobbing. All Karacol knew through the emotional distress that covered all rational thought like a haze was that he was sad. And very, very, angry that he had been forbidden to go to the tournament. Tears scored their way down his face, normally a bright green turned to a more foresty color, the Nameksei-jin equivalent of turning red.

"It wasn't my fault… I can't believe I'm not allowed to go… Muuri is SO unfair…" Karacol thought vainly. It wasn't as if he could do anything to change it. He was still sobbing when he heard a scraping sound, and through irritated, tear filled purple eyes, he gazed up and saw a tiny green figure standing over the hollow, peering down in bewilderment. He thought there was something wrong with the figure's face, as if a piece of it was missing or… He squinted through his tears, focusing on the tiny two-year-old face, at least partially obscured by a lumpy white bandage that somehow enhanced the child's image. Dende had only recently learned to talk, but he had always been sympathetic and never liked to see anyone cry.

"I'm sowwy, Kar-kar." Dende's tiny voice chimed downwards. He still wasn't very good with names, preferring to use the nicknames he had made up. "What wrong? Did you get a boo-boo?" Dende asked forlornly, as he had no idea that Karacol had been watching him and that Karacol had just been punished, being only two years old. All Dende knew was that one of the people he knew was sad.

Karacol stiffened as Dende's words reached him. He didn't even think. He only reacted, as he stood up and leaned down in front of Dende's puzzled face. The child leaned back, unsure of what was happening. Karacol's eyes were ablaze with rage, and a very mean-looking frown etched across his features.

He first began speaking in low tones, but his voice became louder and angrier.

"What's wrong…? What's wrong?! You're what's wrong!" Karacol's tone frightened Dende, who was confused. Karacol stared, uncontrollable rage billowing up inside, even though in his heart he knew this wasn't Dende's fault. "I…I…I HATE YOU!" He screamed, as his ki exploded outwards. It wasn't focused, and it didn't have the destructive force of a blast, but it did produce a wind that forced dirt, rocks, and air in directions all around his, picking up Dende and sending him flying backwards. The child bounced along the ground once or twice, rolled, and skidded to a stop. He sat up and stared at Karacol in silence for a brief moment, purple blood trickling from his reopened gash above his eye, his bandage hanging loosely from the side of his head. Karacol's eyes widened as he realized what he had done. Dende's lip trembled, as his breathing began to accelerate.

"D…Dende… I didn't mean to… I didn't mean that…" He began desperately, but the damage had been done. Not so much from the bruises and scrapes, which hurt, but by the words. Dende sniffled a bit, but before Karacol could do anything else, Dende burst into tears and ran away crying, kicking up dust as he charged away, his loosened bandage waving behind him.

Surprisingly, Karacol didn't get in further trouble. Instead life was much worse. Dende never told Muuri what had happened after Karacol had left that day, and Muuri assumed that he ran in crying because he had fallen and hurt himself. For awhile after that, Dende hardly ever said anything to Karacol, and Karacol, afraid that he would only hurt the child in someway, stayed away.

Karacol later apologized to Dende. But Dende always stayed far away from him. It had been obvious that the child still didn't believe him, and was probably afraid that he would get mad again. After that, Karacol began to realize that fighting wasn't nearly as important as he had thought. Neru ended up winning the tournament, as Karacol was really the only opponent that could come close to matching him. And so, Karacol relaxed more. He didn't train nearly as hard, and played pranks on people. Everyone just assumed he was undisciplined, but he alone knew the truth. He was lonely. He played tricks on people because it was the only way he knew he could interact with them.

Karacol's friendship with Neru suffered as well. He didn't train nearly as hard as he had used to, and that had been the main time he had often talked with Neru. Neru seemed to tolerate his pranks before because he had been a good sparring partner, but now that he pulled a lot more pranks and didn't spar nearly as often, Neru grew more annoyed, as the warrior Nameksei-jin just couldn't comprehend how his number one student had fallen so much. That and… one day, Neru was a lot harsher to Karacol. Karacol knew why. Dende must have told, because Neru wasn't in a bad mood that day, at least with any of the other Nameksei-jin he interacted with. This seemed clearly reserved for Karacol, and he didn't see any other reason he would get angry.

It grew worse every time he saw Neru and Dende sticking together. Karacol wasn't jealous, only deeply sad that no one ever really talked to him. Every time Dende smiled and looked up at Neru, Karacol felt a pang of emotion because he had wrecked his chances with Dende. He would have loved to spend time with Dende and Neru, possibly teaching Dende something. Maybe braving the wilderness for a few hours, or even just walking… Even something as boring as planting Ajissa's would probably be more fun with Dende and Neru to talk to… but as far as he knew, any chances of Neru genuinely liking him, or Dende forgiving him, were gone forever.

Regaining some of his composure, but certainly not all of it, Karacol wiped his eyes and crouched, still watching Neru and Dende, who by now had recovered from his initial problem and was meditating again in an effort to hold the sensation of ki for a longer time. His heart ached and his emotions were at their peak, but he had brought this upon himself. He would not turn away.

Two hours later, a faint rush of air blew Dende's robes this way and that, as the tiny Nameksei-jin's shoes and feet slowly lifted a few inches off the ground, the grass springing back up and just barely touching the soles of Dende's'shoes...

Neru smiled, as Dende seemed to grow a few inches, the child's eyes and teeth clenched. He was focusing his ki now, but it was plainly obvious that he wasn't used to it, and he collapsed back to the ground a few seconds later. It was a great accomplishment though. Neru hadn't learned nearly as fast as Dende was learning. The Nameksei-jin child dusted off his robes and glanced up at Neru expectantly.

"Well?" He asked. Neru quirked an eye-ridge, wondering what the child meant. Dende smiled, light from two of Nameksei's three stars reflecting on his features.

"Did I do good, Neru?" Dende asked expectantly. Neru grinned, nodding as he helped the Nameksei-jin child up to his feet. Neru was enthusiastic about Dende's promise, most likely in part because he had taught Dende himself, feeling joy that his student was succeeding.

"You've almost got it Dende! You know what ki is now, you can sense it to some extent, and now you were able to control it enough to float! Once you've been practicing and develop your own feel for it, you won't even have to think about it very much! All I have to do once you prove you can float for a long time is teach you how to propel yourself, and off you go!" Neru clapped Dende on the shoulder, who giggled.

The lesson continued…

Dende strained, as Neru asked the tenth question. The wind rustled the Nameksei-jin child's robes slightly as the grass waved lazily.

"So Dende, how's Muuri been the past few weeks?" Neru asked. Beads of sweat trickled down Dende's face, but he didn't lose his composure.

"I dunno, Neru. He's seemed good to me, though." Dende said, a tiny hint of exhaustion in his voice. Neru didn't enjoy seeing Dende get tired, but this was necessary.

"That's nice." Neru said wryly. "So how's the weather been in your village, nice and clear? It rained a lot around the Saichoro's house last week." Dende's face fell, but after his face assumed a blank look for a few seconds, he managed to utter a reply.

"Y…yes. It's been nice and clear, Neru." Dende replied, his hands balled into fists, his antennae slanted downwards, his eyes focused on Neru's eyes. His robe fluttered slightly, as a bead of perspiration trickled down into his left eye. Dende flinched, and his left eye shut and watered slightly, but he still didn't lose focus. Neru grinned. It was time to say the final thing he could think of.

"Want me to see if I can convince Muuri to let me watch you during the revival festival tomorrow?"

The look on Dende's face was comical, as his eyes snapped open even wider and he grinned with glee. A split-second later, his face took on a surprised look and he just barely managed to gather together his focus and prevent his feet from touching the ground. Neru grinned broadly, as Dende continued to impress him, despite his mishap.

"Okay Dende, you've proven that you can float while focusing on other things and not letting your emotions distract your focus…" Dende's eyes locked on Neru.

"You can stop now." Neru replied awkwardly, as Dende shook his head no. The child looked about ready to pass out.

"Dende, what's wrong?" Neru asked. Dende's lips tightened into a frown.

"How do I know you're not trying to trick me?" He said pouting yet somehow managing to remain floating. Neru groaned. He leaned in and picked Dende up, swinging him up in the air with a flourish before setting him squarely on the ground.

"Because I wouldn't have done that if I was trying to trick you. Good job Dende. I'll bet you're ready for a break." Neru said dryly. Dende said nothing and merely fell backwards. Neru grabbed for Dende, because he knew that the child could actually hurt himself pretty badly doing that, but he missed his grab and clenched his eyes shut, waiting for the thud he knew was coming. A moment later, he opened his eyes to see Dende grinning. He was in a vertical position, his face staring up at the sky, but something seemed wrong with the way the child was laying, almost as if… Neru clapped his hands together.

"Dende! That's great! You managed to make yourself float right before your back touched the ground!" The child nodded, and the dust around him "poofed" up slightly as he let go of his focus and descended the remaining inch or so to the ground, pleased that Neru was proud of him. Dende sat up, and Neru sat down next to the child.

"Hey Neru, want to hear a joke I heard?" Dende asked, accepting a small bottle of water Neru pulled out of his vest. Neru shrugged.

"Sure thing Dende, let's hear it."

"Well…" Dende began.

Karacol sighed. Even his sharp Nameksei-jin ears couldn't pick up what Neru and Dende were saying, but he figured that it was a joke, judging by the way both Nameksei-jin burst into peels of laughter… Karacol sighed as he pictured himself sitting next to Neru and Dende, having a good time like they were. Then it hit him. He would pull a prank on Neru and Dende, which would get their attention. Then he could hang out with them for awhile! He sat down and began to ponder exactly what he could do, knocking one antenna around with his finger, which he often did when he was thinking.

Neru floated with Dende about twenty feet up in the air, wind whistling around the two of them. He looked into Dende's eyes, and the child nodded that he was ready. Neru let go of Dende, who descended a few centimeters before focusing his ki and floating in front of Neru. Though he couldn't propel himself yet, floating twenty feet off the ground was no different then floating two inches off the ground, provided that one had a means of getting up twenty feet in the air. Neru, perfectly capable of propelling himself and his ki, had picked Dende up with the child's approval, and taken him up into the air. The last lesson would go much easier now that Dende could float fairly well while focusing on what Neru was saying, and it was a lot easier then sitting on the ground explaining it. Neru soared above Dende a moment, glowing with white light, then floated down in front of the child's eye level once more.

"See that Dende? That's the ki you use to propel yourself… you see, you project your ki outward in the opposite direction you want to go, while still floating,. It's kind of difficult at first, but you'll have an easier time then I did." Dende peered at Neru, taking everything he said in.

"Why will I have an easier time then you, Neru?" Dende asked. Neru began his lengthy explanation.

"Well, there's another type of ki, the kind I used to bore a hole through that rock earlier. You can use that to fly, but it is very dangerous for anyone around you, since it'll blast whatever it touches. I'm a warrior Nameksei-jin, so I have a natural affinity for that type of ki. You're not a warrior though, so you don't have the same problem… your ki as it is now should be perfect for flying, you won't have to focus on altering it. All you have to do now is focus on floating and projecting your ki." Neru explained.

Dende glanced down at the ground, his face twisted in bewilderment.

"How will I do that, Neru?" Dende requested. Neru grinned.

"You know that feeling you had when you were learning how to sense ki? The one you felt on top of you? That was your own ki, remember? Try sensing your own ki and try to sort of… push it out in the direction opposite the one you want to go. Remember that you still have to focus on floating, but don't panic if you lose focus. I'm here. I won't let you fall." Dende looked hesitant, trusting Neru completely but, as flying was not something that Nameksei-jin had originally been gifted with unless they had once had wings, he was a little scared at seeing the ground from so high up, not holding on to Neru or anyone else.

Neru watched as Dende tried to focus himself, and smiled. A moment later, a white light blasted out of Dende's left side with a sound of expelling energy, and the child screamed in surprise. Being propelled to the right about ten feet. Neru threw a hand across his forehead and started laughing after seeing Dende still floating there, staring at him. Dende's face adopted a quizzical look, his mouth becoming a tiny o. Neru noticed his expression and stopped laughing. He flew over to Dende easily.

"Sorry Dende, I didn't mean to laugh. It just looked pretty funny, because normally it's easiest to expel ki out around your feet. Dende stared, and for a moment Neru was afraid that he had hurt Dende's feelings, and that the child was going to cry. During a second that felt like a minute, Dende stared, but then giggled.

"You do it Neru!" Dende exclaimed. Neru gulped. He had spent years channeling ki through his feet, and wasn't sure how easily he'd be able to channel the non-destructive variety through his side. He clenched his eyes shut, focused for only a split second, and…

Neru shot to the left even as a bolt of ki blasted to the right over the horizon. Dende's giggles were nearly drowned out by the sound of a booming explosion as a mountain in the distance gained a blackened scorch mark above it's base, which was still easily visible despite the distance. Neru gaped in the mountain's direction even while Dende continued to laugh.

"Whoops." Was all Neru could manage to say, blushing slightly.

Karacol kicked his feet up in the air, laughing so hard he could barely breathe. He had been watching Neru and Dende, had deduced what Dende had said to Neru, and had found the proceeding event insanely funny, momentarily snapping him out of his depression and getting his mind rolling on a prank he could play on the two of them.

"Heh… I can't believe Neru did that! I have to think about something I can do to him!" Karacol said outloud. He sat down, chuckled a bit more, and resumed thinking about the "perfect prank".

This time, Dende skyrocketed into the air, but not with one sustained ki blast. He seemed incapable of maintaining propulsion, instead channeling ki through his feet for a few seconds, stopping, then flying upwards again. Neru watched him carefully, trying to ascertain what was wrong. It wasn't the most fluid flying he'd ever seen, but Dende was still getting somewhere. Neru smoothly glided up in front of Dende, who was relaxing for a moment.

"What's wrong, Dende? How come you keep stopping like that? You did pretty good that time!" Dende glanced up, startled by Neru's abrupt appearance. He sighed, being completely honest with his mentor.

"I'm afraid, Neru! I'm having trouble stopping, and I'm afraid if I keep trying and can't stop I'll fly off of the world…"

Neru raised an eye ridge and scratched his head.

"What would make you think that Dende? You shouldn't have any trouble stopping, given all that you've learned…"

"B…but… I had a nightmare a few days ago… you were there…" Dende's voice cracked slightly, as he began trembling and shuddering. Neru gulped. If this was any indication, then his test of being Dende's guardian might be bumped up yet another situation… Dende acted so mature at times, he had difficulty remembering that the child was only a three-year-old and was perfectly within his boundaries to cry when he thought of something unpleasant.

"I started flying away… and you started flying after me, but you couldn't catch up and I just went flying on and on and on until I wasn't even on Nameksei anymore… And no one ever came to help me, even though I called and called and…" Dende didn't finish, because the Nameksei-jin had burst into tears even as Neru put on a burst of speed and caught the child, his concentration and focus broken. Neru looked around awkwardly as the child sobbed, burying his face in Neru's vest-clad shoulder. When he finally thought of something to say though, he spoke straight from the heart.

"Don't worry Dende, I swear I won't let anything happen to you…" Neru said softly. To his surprise, Dende's sobs diminished and he looked up at the older Nameksei-jin with tear filled eyes.

"P…promise?" Dende demanded. Neru nodded. Satisfied, Dende sniffled a little more in Neru's arms, then wiped his eyes with one of his huge sleeves. He whispered in Neru's ear, and the warrior Nameksei-jin let go of him, the child's robes fluttering all around as he descended a foot or two before focusing his mind and suspending himself in mid-air. Dende's face took on a determined look, and a moment later his robes fluttered upwards as he surrounded himself with a bright light. Neru grinned.

"That's a great way to practice, Dende! If you expel an even amount of ki in all directions you won't go anywhere, and it teaches you control!" Neru exclaimed. Dende's eyes narrowed, and a moment later he flew upwards, his arms outstretched in front of his face, in a manner somewhat different from the way Neru flew, normally with his arms jutting out at acute angles. He started flying downwards, changed his trajectory, and a moment later the Nameksei-jin child was flying around Neru in circles, even while Neru exclaimed,

"That's great Dende! You've done it!" Dende hardly heard these kind words though, they were almost completely drowned out by his own laughing and gleeful screaming, as the world turned all around him, wind rushing across his face while his antennae flapped wildly. Dende stopped in mid-air for a second and stared at Neru, who was grinning.

"Hey Neru, wanna race?" Dende asked, full of confidence. Neru grinned. He doubted Dende had the speed to match him, but he wasn't going to let Dende know that, instead intending to pretend to tire out and slow down, allowing Dende to win.

Hiding behind a tree nearby, Karacol snickered as he overheard Dende's words. Not knowing Neru's intent, he bent down and picked up a smooth, rounded rock and whispered softly to himself.

"Hehe… I think I'll throw this rock at Neru so Dende pulls ahead and wins, that'll bug the heck out of him!" Up above, Dende and Neru started flying to the right, slowly at first, as Neru pointed out a marker. Karacol leapt out of his hiding place as soon as Neru and Dende took off, and wound up to throw the rock… he took careful aim at Neru, and snapped his arm forward, sending the rock on it's unchangeable trajectory...

"Wow Dende! You're so fast, I'm having trouble keeping up!" Neru yelled, the wind rushing past him as Dende flew alongside him, in the lead by about a nose. Dende giggled and clenched his fists, as if willing himself to go faster. At that moment, Neru faked a gasp and the white light around him slowly diminished, as something whizzed past his ear.

"What the…?" Neru thought.

Karacol's eyes widened in horror as he saw Neru's speed decrease dramatically, glancing back behind and looking directly at him long before the rock should have hit him. He realized that he hadn't thought that Neru might let Dende win, and he was sure by now that the rock had missed Neru. But he wasn't so horrified that Neru had spotted him and that his prank was ruined. That was too simple. Life was too cruel. The rock's trajectory was perfectly angled to hit Neru in his original position… or in this case, the head of the Nameksei-jin child in front of him. Karacol's mouth opened wide, as a guttural shriek of despair escaped his lungs, a scream against the laws of physics, against the world itself.

"Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!"

Neru froze, wondering why in the world Karacol was standing there screaming, and why Karacol's face had a look of pure horror. A moment later he heard a yelp, and the look of shock on his face turned to a look rivaling Karacol's in terms of fear. He spun around in mid-air, just in time to see Dende begin plummeting towards the blue-green ground of Nameksei. Dende was falling rapidly, his body limp, his robes fluttering upwards as the ground rushed ever closer to his form. Neru wasted no time, blasting in an arc towards Dende as fast as he was capable, maybe even faster. Dende continued to fall, now obviously unconscious. Whatever had whizzed past him, it must have struck Dende in the head or some other vital spot. Another, horrifying thought culminated his desperate race against time.

"No! I'm not going to make it!"

Despite all of his skill as a warrior, Neru was among the smartest Nameksei-jin on the planet in terms of logic and reasoning capacity. He hated with his entire being to admit it, but he knew he wasn't going to get to Dende in time to prevent the child from being injured. There was only one thing left to do, minimize the impact. His ki control wasn't excellent, and Neru knew that attempting to slow Dende directly might be dangerous, given his accident when trying to fly from his side earlier during the lessons. So he did the only thing he could. He focused his ki and gave Dende a mental push that was very physical, timing it just as Dende smashed into the ground with a terrible thud, causing the child to roll, allowing his entire body and not just his back to absorb some of the shock. By the time Neru had landed, Dende had rolled along the ground and was lying face up, with his eyes closed. Neru didn't get much more of a look then that because Karacol had arrived, running at full speed, a few seconds before he had gotten a good look at Dende. Karacol bent down and cradled the Nameksei-jin child's head, crouching over the child, whose face was covered with bruises and scrapes, with a cracked lip and a broken nose also detracting from his condition.

Karacol blocked Neru from getting a better look, as Neru spoke quickly, worried sick for Dende. He pushed his anger at Karacol aside for the moment.

"What is it! How bad is he hurt!" Neru demanded, keeping a few feet distant from Karacol and Dende, fervently hoping that it was some fluke, that the child was merely asleep and hadn't sustained many injuries, anything.

It seemed like minutes had passed, but in reality it was only a few seconds, as Karacol turned around, his eyes brimming with tears. This surprised Neru, since the younger Nameksei-jin was almost as stern as he was, even though Neru was pretty sure he just might have been crying some himself. Karacol's voice was slow. Resigned. Filled with depressed emotion.

"H…he's…" Neru's eyes widened as he recognized the look in Karacol's eyes. He had only seen it once before, in the Saichoro's eyes some years ago.

"No…" Neru choked, his voice barely above a whisper.

Karacol, unable to conceal his emotions, nodded slowly.

"H…he's n… n… not breathing, Neru. D… D… Dende's dead."

_Special thanks to Tomo-chan and Dendeshe for their assistance with this story so far! I'd forgotten to mention it before, but they do deserve some credit. ^_^_


	5. 

Nameksei: Before Freezer Chapter 5 ****

Nameksei-Before Freezer

Chapter 5

By Cremrock

Karacol's words sunk in, leaving Neru stunned, his mouth agape in disbelief.

"No! It's just not possible! I…I swore I wouldn't let anything happen to him, It's my responsibility to take care of him!" Neru's thoughts pounded in his mind, as a wave of grief washed over him. He had… he had… He had been asking the question the whole lesson, and now, he finally realized it. He wanted to be Dende's guardian. And now… now… the child was… Neru's world had collapsed. Then a sudden wave of emotion overtook him. But it wasn't all sadness. Not yet. He had a goal.

Only a few seconds had passed since Dende had smashed into the ground, and now Karacol was cradling the Nameksei-jin child and crying softly. Tears streamed down Neru's own face. But it wasn't the end. He wouldn't let it be. Dende had shown time and time again how determined he was, and for his sake, Neru wasn't about to let Dende give it up. He shoved Karacol roughly aside; who began babbling some nonsense.

"NO! IT'S ALL MY FAULT! DENDE! WHYYYY…" Karacol continued babbling, but Neru shut him out. He was tempted to shut him up, but slugging Karacol wouldn't help matters right now. He wiped his eyes with the back of his hand, tossing away the tears. He needed to concentrate, to… Neru was acting on sheer instinct now, from his training as a warrior. And in order to do that, however painful it might be, he HAD to forget his attachment to Dende, so he could allow his instincts and training, not emotion, to shine through. And in a moment, Neru was a grieving guardian and teacher no longer. He was a warrior again. Karacol noticed this sudden change in Neru's appearance, but continued weeping just the same. To him, it seemed futile. Dende was gone, and it was his fault.

Determination and fierceness setting in on his features, Neru began surveying the child rapidly the way he would a wounded fellow Nameksei-jin in battle. He checked the child quickly. His neck wasn't broken… He had some head lacerations that looked rather nasty, but that weren't bleeding much. There was that broken nose, but that didn't seem too serious… Neru glanced at the child's chest for a moment, and a second later, he grabbed the top of Dende's robe and tore it open, which wasn't very hard because it had half a dozen tears in it anyway. There were some cuts on Dende's chest, one of them fairly deep, and Neru was pretty sure there were some on the child's back as well, but there didn't seem to be any major blood vessels punctured. But there didn't seem to be much blood hemorrhaging, which was surprising, because a few of the cuts on the child were deep. A sudden panic overtook him again, and he put a hand on Dende's neck, the best place to locate a pulse, symbolizing that the child's heart was still beating. He couldn't feel it, and when he put a hand in front of Dende's mouth he didn't feel any rush of air. Despair washed over him once more, but he could still feel a very weak ki, so Dende wasn't quite gone yet. There had to be a way!

He frowned, remembering something Karacol likely didn't know, something he had seen the elder of his village do and explain when he was just a tiny Nameksei-jin child. He had been sparring with Tulapas, and because he had just been getting a feel for his power at that time, had accidentally knocked Tulapas out with a badly performed punch-chop combo to the back of the Nameksei-jin's head. The Nameksei-jin watching them shrieked in despair, because Tulapas seemed dead. He wasn't breathing and had no pulse. But Neru remembered the elder's expression very clearly. He was concerned and walked hurriedly, but he was not afraid, walking up to Tulapas and kneeling down over him after concentrating. A moment later Tulapas sat up. Sparring for that day was ended, and the elder later explained to the entourage gathered around what had happened, informing them that they might save someone else's life someday.

When taking a very hard knock to the head, Nameksei-jin children's bodies could actually shut down. No Nameksei-jin ever knew why this was so, or even why it didn't affect adults. There were theories of course. Some Nameksei-jin believed that a child's cranium hadn't grown enough to withstand such an impact without harming the brain. In the best case, the result was a loss of most conscious thought… and a loss of involuntary body functions as well. Without those the child would be dead if unable to be revived in time. Indeed, sometimes even the standard revival methods didn't work, in the case with that child that had fallen off that cliff years ago. That had been different though. The easiest way to tell if the Nameksei-jin was still alive was to sense if they had ki. If they did, they were still alive. When the ki vanished, they were dead. Harsh, but simple. Neru closed his eyes and focused rapidly. Dende's ki was there, very faint. But it gave him hope.

He didn't even consider the fact that the child's brain might have been too badly damaged for any hope, or if Dende might permanently unconscious. He was no healer Nameksei-jin. He quickly glanced at Dende's wounds again, and couldn't help wondering how bad the child might be if he hadn't thought enough to make Dende roll and absorb some of the shock. If he hadn't done that, then Dende might have been more badly hurt, or died on impact…

"Quit thinking about that. You did the right thing, now concentrate!" Neru mentally chided himself. He quickly shook his head, clearing his thoughts. There was no time to worry about what might have happened, only what was happening. Neru sighed. He was going to hate to do this, given the condition the child's body was in, but if he didn't he was positive the child's condition would be much worse in another minute or two. Karacol continued babbling, but his eyes widened in disbelief as he saw Neru raise one massive hand over the child's body.

"N…Neru?! What are you…? Don't!" Karacol stammered, as Neru slapped his hand against the child's uncut cheek with the loud smack of flesh against flesh. Dende flinched violently for a second, proving that the child still had at least an inkling of his nervous system left, but when Neru checked again, he was in the same condition. His heart wasn't beating and he still wasn't breathing.

"Come on Dende, snap out of it! I… I know you can do it!" Neru exclaimed, slapping Dende across the face again. This time the child shook more, and for a brief second Neru could have sworn he saw Dende's chest rise and fall, but it didn't rise again. Karacol thought Neru had clearly lost it.

"Neru! Stop!" Karacol cried vainly. Neru spun around, his voice a snarl.

"Shut up!"

"Dende… come back to us!" Neru shrieked, slapping the child across the face even harder this time, as the child jolted up, a scream of pain ripping through the air. But this time the child's chest continued to rise and fall. His pulse was weak, but steady. There was hope, but Dende's condition wasn't assured yet, as now that his heart was finally pumping again, the cuts and lacerations all over him started to bleed again. Neru wasted no time, as his warrior's training was still having its affect on him, now combined with the urgency of not losing Dende now that he was back. In one fluid motion he threw his long vest off and began tearing strips of it into bandages, tying them around most of the major gashes and cuts on Dende's face and chest. Karacol saw what he was doing, and joined in bandaging Dende. A few minutes later, the bandages were beginning to be discolored by purple blood, but they would hopefully help the child at least a little longer.

Karacol sighed in relief, and put a hand on Neru's shoulder. That was when Neru snapped, emotionally and physically.

"Neru! You did it! He's alive, he's…" Karacol didn't finish, choking as Neru's left hand shot in and grabbed him around the neck. Neru's voice was savage, serious, yet didn't go below a whisper, which somehow added to its intensity. He scarcely knew what he was doing, his emotions taking almost complete control. Karacol gasped, struggling for air. He lifted the younger Nameksei-jin over his head, one handed, and stared up into Karacol's horrified eyes.

"Don't tell me about how alive he is! Your pranks have nearly cost Dende his life… and still might." Karacol's eyes widened as Neru squeezed his neck tighter, unable to breathe or speak. His eyes continued to burn into Karacol's, as he continued. "I don't ever want to see you again. Now get out of here!" Neru threw Karacol roughly to the ground, who scooted away, falling backwards.

"But Neru, I…" Neru raised a hand, in a move even Karacol recognized. He was preparing to fire a ki blast. Karacol wasn't quite sure if Neru truly meant his next words, as normally the warrior was among the most even-tempered Nameksei-jin he knew. But there was no mistaking the look in Neru's eyes, filled with murderous intent, and Karacol almost felt that Neru would have liked nothing more, the way he looked. Neru's hand began to glow. For a brief moment, what little self-control Neru had left kicked in.

"Karacol, if you don't leave right away, I swear I'm going to kill you!"

Neru's intent was clear. Karacol, feared for his life yet desperately wanted to see if Dende would be okay. Nature's instincts for survival registered on Karacol, and he spun around and flew away as fast as possible, depressed beyond belief.

Neru picked up the unconscious Dende and held him in both arms, ripping through the sky as quickly as he could, his urgency making him go faster then ever. He glanced down at Dende's awful condition, and a tear rolled down his cheek, effectively making him forget his rage at Karacol, for the moment. Now it was time to get emotional. At this speed, the village would only be a few minutes away. He glanced down again at Dende's unconscious, battered form. It was said that even when unconscious, sometimes a person could hear what others were saying.

"You'll make it, kid. You're too strong not to." Neru said softly. Wind blew his antennae this way and that, and his body complained about the stress it was taking maintaining this speed, but Neru ignored it. Pain could be dealt with. Dende's death couldn't.

In Muuri's village, almost every Nameksei-jin was busy. Some were making sure there would be enough water to drink, while others were clearing out a spot for everyone to stand. The taller ones where busily hanging brightly colored streamers of cloth from house to house, while the children were scurrying around trying to find chairs and stools for everyone. There was a reason it was held every twenty years, and all the Nameksei-jin were determined to make it enjoyable for all. It had it's serious aspect, as it was also a time to respect the fallen of the Nameksei-jin race, the ones whom their Saichoro had known. Every Nameksei-jin in the village was busy, save for two. Nameksei-jin from the other villages were already starting to arrive and help out.

Muuri smiled, watching tiny Kargo crawl across the room, the Nameksei-jin baby giggling happily at discovering he could move around on his own in the world. He had only recently learned to crawl, and Muuri had had quite a time making sure there wasn't anything easily within reach that could harm the child. The child was wearing beige pants and a little red vest, but Muuri didn't think Nameksei-jin children should have to wear a robe when they were that little. He'd just get tangled up in it while crawling anyway. Muuri continued watching Kargo for a moment, and stood up from his chair to get a pitcher of Zernitin water he had been saving, for he was expecting visitors to begin showing up soon.

Though it seemed odd, there was a distinctly different flavor from almost every body of water on Nameksei. It had to do with the type of minerals upon which the water rested on. As far as nutrition, water was water, but Muuri didn't see anything wrong with having the best now and then. The Nameksei-jin race might be survivors, but nothing said they had to drink the same tasting water all the time. The Zernitin springs were on a distant corner of Nameksei, and as rare things often go, seemed to offer the best taste. Muuri felt that might be influenced simply because it was easily the rarest and hardest to get water on Nameksei, but he couldn't argue that he liked it. The golden-brown colored thin-necked jug wasn't on the shelf.

"Where did I put that?"

He heard a crash behind him and spun around, realizing he had taken his eyes off the baby for a few seconds. What he saw next caused him to fall over laughing, as the scene in front of him was comical. Two tiny green and pink arms wrapped around a golden-brown thin-necked jug that Kargo, sitting up with a determined stare on his face, was trying to get open. A moment later, whether it was some ancient Nameksei-jin instinct or not, Muuri chuckled even louder as Kargo opened his mouth wide, turned his head sideways and started employing his tiny teeth in an effort to gnaw his way through the jug. A large shadow passed over the baby, blocking the sunlight, and confused, he looked up into Muuri's dark green smiling face, which chuckled again. He pounded one hand on the jug, which echoed with the slosh of water, and then made a happy child like squeal in Muuri's direction, grinning happily as Muuri's laughs continued.

"I take it that's Nameksei-jin for I'm thirsty, eh?" Muuri said in a jolly tone. He picked the child up with one hand and the jug up in the other. It was times like this that made him reconsider that he wouldn't be able to take care of two children, for they were both certainly a joy in his life. He wondered briefly how Neru and Dende's lesson was going, but quickly dismissed the thought. He had to prepare for a meeting with Tuno, the elder of the nearest village.

He poured Kargo a small glass of water, who cupped his hands around it and started drinking, albeit somewhat messily, as water sloshed over his chin and vest. Suddenly a loud chuckle that wasn't Muuri's tuned through the room, and Muuri spun around to see Tuno standing in the doorway, clutching the crook of a gnarled, wooden staff in one hand, his obtuse, robed figure blocking most of the light coming into the room. Muuri smiled. If there was one thing known about Elder Tuno, it was that he adored the antics of children probably more then any other Nameksei-jin, Muuri included. Well, in his prime, maybe their Saichoro adored them a little more…

Muuri saw another shadow behind the elder, although judging by the size the only Nameksei-jin that big would have to be Tulapas. Muuri chuckled.

"Welcome, Tuno! I thought you were going to be a little longer, I was just getting some drinks ready… Why is Tulapas behind you, anyway?" Muuri questioned. Tuno leaned in close to Muuri's ear and grinned, whispering.

"Well… He hasn't exactly been assisting with putting up the decorations, he's mostly making a mess of things. So… I figured I'd take him with me and he could "guard" the entrance since this meeting is soooo important." Muuri chuckled and nodded, as knowing Tulapas, that would be a very good idea.

Kargo looked up and burst into a grin upon sighting Tuno. Before the elder Nameksei-jin could react, Kargo jumped off the table, crashing into Tuno, who scrambled wildly to keep from dropping the giggling Nameksei-jin, his staff clattering to the ground. He glanced at Kargo, returning the smile, then looked at Muuri, who retrieved his staff and handed it back to him. Muuri gestured towards the table, and Tuno nodded and followed, sitting down at the first chair, the door behind him. Muuri seated himself at the chair opposite him, and folded his hands, resting them on the table while Tuno shifted Kargo around, the baby assuming a familiar position, sitting in Tuno's lap and looking very happy. Relaxing, the two elders began to discuss the plans for the upcoming festival. They had no idea that their meeting was soon to be interrupted…

Karacol flew aimlessly, not knowing where he was going and not caring either. The only thing he could do was keep replaying the events that had transpired in his mind. It was horrifying. He saw it all again. The rock, flying through the air… Neru slowing down just as the rock was about to reach its target… His own scream of horror… Dende's yelp of pain as the rock hit the back of his head… The child's slow, eerily graceful descent to the ground… And the sickening thud as Dende rolled and bounced before coming to a stop, and the horror he had felt upon seeing Dende's condition afterwards…

Karacol felt it all again. He would not and could not stop thinking about it, the events continuing to chip away at what little resolve he had left. It was his fault. All of it, and nothing could take that back. He didn't even know if Dende was alive, now, and if he went back, Neru might keep true to his words… The fact that he had actually helped bandage the child up meant nothing to him, because the bandages wouldn't have been necessary at all if… He imagined himself with Neru and Dende, all three of them chatting happily, flying back to the village. But now it was even worse then before, and he felt that would never be. Tears rolled down his cheeks, blurring his vision, and his neck throbbed slightly where Neru's Nameksei-jin clawed fingers had dug in. Distracted, his emotional unrest abandoning most senses, he hardly felt it when he smashed into a tree and crashed to the ground, the tree splintering outwards with a loud crack.

He was lying sprawled out on the ground, an emotional wreck. He didn't even try to stop thinking about the past events now. All he knew was sorrow, and his own mind wouldn't let him forget, as he started thinking to himself, unable to stop. His head throbbed where he had crashed into the tree, but he was so far gone by now that he could barely feel the pain.

"It's all your fault. You've done nothing but cause Neru and Dende trouble ever since you've meant them, and they hate you. No one likes you, and no one cares about you either. You can't even say you're the best fighter. That's all you are, Karacol. A failure that causes grief and trouble to whomever you meet. You may even have killed a child!"

Karacol wept, while the throbbing in his head got even more painful. After all, how could his thoughts lie? No one else was saying them, he was talking to himself. Alone, with no friends, as it seemed it was doomed to be, now that Neru was going to kill him if he ever saw his face again. The throbbing in his head slowly overcoming him as two suns beat down overhead, Karacol, second-best fighting Nameksei-jin and harbinger of grief to all he met, collapsed into unconsciousness, yielding to the darkness.

The wind fluttered around Karacol's unconscious form, as his long vest swirled about, while grass and splinters of wood blew in all directions, as if something large was coming. Coming very fast. A moment later, a tremendous crash shook the area, as a badly damaged, saucer-like spaceship that glowed red-hot smashed into the ground, several hundred yards from where Karacol lay. But it didn't matter. No one was around or awake to hear it anyway.

Neru's race against time continued, an intense, determined look etched onto his face. Dende was still held as gently as possible in his outstretched arms, in a posture somewhat awkward for flying but as one that would put as little stress as possible on the child, whom, not surprisingly, remained unconscious. A wave of regret washed over Neru as he glanced at the child, who looked helpless with so many cuts, bruises, and bandages across his face! He was angry, not only with Karacol, but also at himself. He glanced at Dende's much paler green then normal face. The child's condition was definitely worsening, but whether through blood loss, an internal injury, or for some other reason, Neru couldn't tell. Loose grass flew in the wind provided by his wake.

"I couldn't reach Dende in time. Curse my strength! It didn't do anything to prevent… THIS." The bitter thought filled his mind, mixing itself with a dozen other thoughts, guilt, regret, hatred, and most of all, sorrow. But Neru's determination was still shining through, and it was for this reason that he pushed himself to his maximum limit, ripping through the air, sheathed in ki energy. It seemed like hours to Neru, but a scant few minutes later, he finally sighted the village over the horizon. His eyes narrowed.

"I have to reach Muuri in time!"

"Just hang on a bit longer, Dende!" Neru thought out loud, trying to will Dende to maintain his strength and cling to life, even as Neru exhausted his reserves of energy, flying faster then he had ever thought capable. Most of the Nameksei-jin were on the other side of the village, and Neru knew that Muuri would be his best bet for getting the child help. He veered off towards that direction, spying Tulapas standing in the door to Muuri's hut, which was closed to prevent anything from being overheard. Tulapas, ignorant as always, only saw Dende as a bundle of rags since he was mostly covered up, obscured by Neru's bandages and his own tattered clothes, and the Nameksei-jin warrior's arm. It was clear he had absolutely no idea about the urgency of Neru's situation, although any other Nameksei-jin would have been able to tell that something was wrong by the way Neru looked. Tulapas stood in front of Neru and stated matter-of-factly,

"I'm sorry Neru, but I can't let you pass. There's a very important meeting going on."

Neru's face contorted, and still driven by the urgency to save Dende, he didn't think, he only acted. His only thought on the matter was that Tulapas could forgive him later. Dende needed help now, as if the blood continuing to stain the bandages, or the child's pale skin and shallow breathing were any example.

For a moment, Tulapas saw a huge green blur flying straight at him. A moment later, he saw nothing as he keeled over, knocked unconscious. Neru placed a sweat-covered palm on the door. Not surprisingly, it was locked, even as Neru muttered a Nameksei-jin curse under his breath.

"Hang on just a little longer, Dende!"

Muuri sipped his water as Tuno continued to give Muuri advice on how to run the festival. It was his honor this time, and it had been Tuno's last time, and so in order to spare his brother trouble, he was telling him what he did right and what he did wrong. By now Kargo was asleep again, leaning over Tuno's shoulder, supported by one hand.

"Muuri, you should also remember to…" Muuri held up a hand, interrupting, as his ears perked up a bit and his brow wrinkled in concentration. Tuno blinked. "What's wrong?" 

"Tuno, did you hear a thump?" A moment later, he saw the door behind Tuno begin to glow with yellow energy…

Muuri was old, but he was fairly quick for his age. He had once been the fastest Nameksei-jin on the planet in his younger days when he had been growing up with the other elders. It had been during that wonderful time so many years ago when the Saichoro had been in fairly good health, walking and teaching them how to live and take care of their future brothers.

That was when everything went insane. He exhibited a hint of his former talent as he lunged at Tuno, knocking him to the ground just as the door above them exploded, showering them with errant shards of building material. Thankfully, Tuno had draped his other arm over Kargo as he had fallen, shielding the baby from sustaining any nicks or bruises, although the explosion did wake the baby up, who began his patented wail.

A moment later Neru rushed in through the smoking doorframe, screaming for assistance. Muuri and Tuno leapt up quickly, the urgency in Neru's tone spurring them to action.

"What is it? What's wrong?!" Muuri demanded urgently, beating Tuno to the question. The look in Neru's eyes was desperate, his expression grim, and it frightened Muuri, because he had no idea what could make Neru, of all people, look that disturbed. In the confusion, they still hadn't noticed the bundle Neru carried. Neru rushed past them towards the table, the only elevated platform in sight.

"You've got to help now! Dende's hurt, badly! There was an accident…" Neru said, in a resigned tone. He wasn't going to allow himself to feel even the slightest bit of relief until he was sure Dende was going to be okay. Muuri and Tuno gasped as Neru set the bundle down on the table, revealing the battered Nameksei-jin child, whom now appeared even paler out of the direct light. Kargo continued wailing, not knowing what was going on, as Neru's abrupt appearance had nearly scared the dozing child to death.

Muuri realized the seriousness of the situation, and decided that an explanation could wait. He ran into the other room, looking for medicines and bandages. Neru glanced up at Tuno, who was horrified at the extent of the child's injuries. Neru remembered something and looked at Tuno again desperately.

"You're not a fighting-type Nameksei-jin, right?! Isn't it in your power to heal Dende?" Neru demanded. Tuno shrunk back, then nodded meekly. He wasn't very good at dealing with desperate situations, and seeing a child as bright and active as Dende hurt so badly… he quickly handed the screaming Kargo to Neru and placed two large, wrinkled hands on Dende's chest, quickly tearing off most of the major bandages. Neru didn't protest, as he figured that the elder knew what he was doing.

"I'll try, Neru. I've lost a lot of my power over the years, and there are a lot of wounds…" Tuno's voice trailed off, as Neru nodded grimly, hoping for the best. Tuno closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, focusing his own ki as Muuri re-entered the room, arms laden with bandages. Upon seeing what Tuno was doing, Muuri set the bandages on the table but otherwise didn't interrupt, standing beside the elder. A moment later, a chime-like humming sound filled the occupant's ears, as the area around Tuno and Dende began to glow with a faint green light. Even Kargo stopped wailing for a moment, mesmerized by the light. Muuri and Neru exchanged glances, as beads of sweat trickled down Tuno's forehead.

"Come on, please work… Pull out of it Dende!" Neru pleaded, thinking to himself, although he was pretty sure Muuri and Tuno picked that thought up.

The light intensified as Tuno staggered slightly. Muuri reached a hand out to steady the elder, who regained his balance, although he started to look very tired. Neru stared at Dende. Something was happening. One moment, a cut was there, and then the next it was replaced by healthy green skin. A large gash slowly began to pull together, as the purple blood in sight slowly shrunk down, swallowed by the regenerating flesh, moving closer and closer until there was no wound at all, and no scar apparent.

"Yes, yes… just keep it up a little longer elder…" Neru urged, happiness and relief beginning to seep into his being even while caution reminded him that Dende wasn't fully healed yet. Muuri and Kargo continued watching in silence. One by one, the larger wounds on Dende's face sealed together, the trickle of blood dripping out of his broken nose disappeared entirely, an his face began to take on a healthier, darker green look. A moment later the green light and the humming stopped, as Tuno opened his drooping eyes, suddenly looking as if he hadn't gotten any sleep for a long time. Dende hadn't opened his eyes yet, although Neru noticed that the child was breathing much easier. He glanced at Tuno, concern in his voice for both child and elder.

"Elder! Are you okay? Dende's going to be okay, right?"

Tuno's voice sounded weak and distant as Muuri steadied him once more. He smiled weakly.

"H…he will live, although it's likely he'll sleep for awhile and then wake up aching all over. I'm not… not nearly as proficient a healer as I used to…" Tuno slowly fell towards the ground, his eyes rolling up into the back of his head. Fortunately, Muuri managed to catch him and keep him from crashing to the ground, and Neru extended his free hand to help Muuri steady the exhausted elder. Upon the site of his favorite Nameksei-jin fainting, Kargo began wailing, his only real method of communicating his fear and dissatisfaction. Muuri glanced up at Neru with questioning eyes.

The relief on Neru's face was evident, despite the fact that both elder and child were now asleep. He had succeeded and rushed Dende back in time. The child would live. That was enough comfort, for now. Muuri regarded Neru with a serious expression, and Neru began to think Muuri was going to shout and demand to know what had happened to his child, but when the other elder finally spoke, there was a level of compassion in his voice.

"Take Dende and put him in his bed… Tuno can rest in mine, for now. You can tell me what happened once we're done tending to them." He said, his antennae drooping slightly as he struggled with the burden of Tuno's weight. Neru nodded quickly, and picked Dende up gently, holding each child in one hand, relying heavily on his shoulders. He trudged off towards Dende and Kargo's room, although judging by the healthy wails, Kargo wasn't going to sleep anytime soon. He entered and spied Dende's bed almost immediately. 

He set Kargo down for a moment, who didn't go anywhere, preferring to continue his shriek at the top of his lungs. Neru found himself smiling in pride, glad that the ordeal was over. Dende had done it. He had lived, and before that, he had learned how to fly. He sighed, remembering the child's wounds and pained expression. It was over, for now. He tucked the child in, who breathed rhythmically, locked in a healing sleep, the only evidence of his former injuries being slightly greener skin where the wounds had been before. The child's face still bore a grimace, as if he was in pain or having a nightmare. Neru took notice, and hesitantly brushed a hand against Dende's cheek before turning away, scooping up Kargo, who had seized wailing and was busily sucking one of his tiny thumbs. Neru started walking back towards the main room. He paused in the doorway, and glanced back at Dende, whose expression was impossible to read in the dim light.

"Don't worry, I won't let anything hurt you again, Dende." Neru whispered softly. He turned and trudged out. In the darkness, although it was barely noticeable, the unconscious child's grimace had turned up into a slight smile, although whether it was from Neru's touch or not, it was impossible to tell.


	6. 

Nameksei: Before Freezer Chapter 6 ****

Nameksei-Before Freezer

Chapter 6

By Cremrock

The brightly colored insect alighted on a blue-blade of grass, and then, with eight brilliant rainbow-colored wings fluttering in the breeze, the insect propelled itself into the air. It's segmented body twirled as two tiny antennae probed the air around it, it's multi-lensed eyes spying a new chunk of material to rest on in it's never ending search for food. This terrain was different from the normal life on Nameksei. It was cold and metallic, although of course, the insect had no idea what these things were. It sensed familiar warmth coming from a large pink lump mostly buried under some debris in a huge gaping hole in a section of the ground. The insect fluttered down to it, after all, it had nothing to fear.

The insect's species was adored by the Nameksei-jin. It could rest itself on any of them without worry, for there was an ancient Nameksei-jin tradition that believed a visit from such an insect would symbolize good luck, for the insect itself was very rare. With the respect for life that most of the Nameksei-jin had, they never slapped or swatted at an insect, knowing that they had just as much of a right to live as they themselves did. The insect consisted almost entirely on plant matter and harmed nothing else, not being a carnivore or parasite.

There was a slight twitch below the tiny insect's feet, and with a loud rumble, the debris around the lump exploded outwards, as the insect realized it was standing on something that was very much alive. It still had no fear though, taking in a face with huge purple lips, pink spike-like horns, and flabby, loose looking skin. It also appeared to have odd, black skin that stretched up to it's neck, down to it's waist, and above it's shoulders, but of course, the insect had no idea that it was looking at armor. As if making a bridge, an open palm was tentatively held next to the muscle it was on. The insect decided to explore this curiosity, and walked onto the open, outstretched hand… after all, the inhabitants had never harmed it before. Perhaps this was a path that would lead to food. A slight twitching made the insect's instincts for survival kick in, but it was too late. It's last sensation was one brief, intense moment of pain as the hand closed with a quick clutching motion, terminating the insect's existence with an audible crunching sound.

Smetllack felt a liquid in his closed palm, and grinned slightly, opening it, gazing down at its contents. All that remained of the foolish insect was a brownish-yellow ichor, and a few brilliant rainbow colored wings. He wasn't sure if it was peaceful or was intending to suck his blood or one of some other repulsive thing insects do. It didn't matter to him. He did so love to kill things. An innocent person here, a soldier there… terminating an entire planet's population, he didn't care. He reveled in the surge of power he felt, and never tired of it. Whether listening to another creature's dying screams, or not even giving them a chance by crushing their head, or the hunt and the chase… he didn't care. It was fun. And against all odds, he was still alive. Alive to kill again, yet another sign that the galaxy approved of what he was doing, eliminating the weak and serving Master Freezer.

Smetllack gazed up through the massive hole in the roof of the ship, transfixed for a moment by realizing that he was finally on the planet they had been aiming for. Better still, he was relatively unhurt. Blood trickled from a gash above his left eye, but he ignored it. He had sustained far worse. He reached his hand behind a device enclosing his right ear, fumbling for a button. The device itself wrapped around his right temple, ending with a green piece of translucent crystal covering his right eye. A moment later Smetllack heard the beep and then the hiss of static, indicating that his scouter was working.

"Hmmph. I'd better check to see if that weakling is still alive in the engine core…"

"Ideo? Ideo! Come in!" Smetllack barked harshly, putting a hand around the scouter again and clicking the button three times rhythmically, the best way to attempt an override on a scouter. The hiss of static continued, but this time a faint groan was heard, followed by a sinister, clicking voice. Smetllack grinned, not so much because his comrade was alive but because it meant he'd have help fixing the ship and have someone to watch his back. He also had things to discuss. "We need to decide upon our plan of action, Ideo. When can we-" An explosion rocked in the background, as Ideo's urgent voice cut him off. Smetllack growled. His comrade was lucky that it was something as urgent as an explosion, as if he had been interrupted before he would not have hesitated to punish his underling. The fool wasn't much weaker then he was, but his purpose in life was to kill those weaker then he. He grinned coldly. Still, he couldn't kill Ideo yet. Maybe later. He hoped that when they got back to Freezer Planet #36, he would be ordered to do so. He looked forward to it.

"That was the right side of the engine core! We're going to lose it all if I don't get it repaired, I could use some help! We can scout around and talk afterwards!" Ideo's voice chimed with urgency, as Smetllack grumbled an acknowledgement and started running to the engine room, blasting through the humongous chunks of metal blocking his path. If he had his way, they would exterminate the inhabitants of this planet and then take their technology, maybe even having the planet in shape for Freezer to sell, which would be a double bonus. He smiled, smashing through a jammed door. Soon… 

Karacol ducked, narrowly avoiding a ki blast that lanced over his forehead, coming so close that some of the sweat on his forehead turned to steam. He glanced around, off-balance. Where was he? What was going on? It appeared he was in one of the villages on Nameksei. Behind him, a harsh laugh echoed, as he turned around and spied a figure charging for another ki blast. His eyes widened in shock as he recognized the figure. Standing on his feet with a demented look, Neru raised his arms and threw another ki blast, which Karacol had no choice but to dodge. The look on the older Nameksei-jin's face was almost feral, and he grinned harshly.

"Why don't you just roll over and die, Karacol? You know that if I let you live you're going to continue to hurt people…" Neru screamed wildly, and the warrior seemed darker, almost looking… evil. Karacol ducked another ki blast, and rolled to the left. His voice was sad, desperate even.

"Neru! Please! Don't kill me! I never meant to hurt anyone!" Karacol pleaded. Neru laughed harshly.

"Don't try to save your sorry hide with tricks, brother! I have sworn that I WILL kill you! And nothing can stop me! Now if you don't want to die, fight! Fight, fool!" As the events continued and Neru came ever closer to breaking through his defenses, Karacol realized he had no choice, and began preparing to fling a ki blast at Neru. Their fight continued, Brother against brother, Nameksei-jin against Nameksei-jin. Karacol dodged two more ki blasts, which seemed darker then Neru's normal blasts, and dived to the left, hurling his own ki. Neru jumped out of the way just as a figure appeared on the horizon. The ki blast streaked towards the figure. Karacol's eyes bulged in shock as he recognized the figure, even while Neru began a dark and horrible laugh as the sky seemed to get darker.

"NO!" Karacol screamed. A moment later there was an explosion, and ignoring Neru, Karacol ran up to the figure lying on the ground after the explosion. His heart was racing, and he hoped that what was transpiring wasn't happening, but it was. What he saw chilled his blood, Dende was lying on a patch of now dead grass, very badly burned, his eyes clenched shut, and his face frozen in an expression of horror. He was quite obviously dead. Karacol threw himself to the ground and wept, even as Neru walked up behind him.

"You see now, what you've done, what you're always doing. Hurting everything you touch. Why do you even exist?" Neru questioned, but now his face looked considerably different. His antennae were longer and more angular, and his face looked graver, paler even, almost as if he was the oldest Nameksei-jin alive as he stared at Karacol, his eyes burning into the younger Nameksei-jin.

"You killed Dende." The words burned into more then just Karacol's mind. They burned into his soul. Karacol glanced around frantically as more Nameksei-jin surrounded him, all of them staring with cold, burning eyes, chanting along with Neru.

"You killed Dende! You killed Dende! You killed Dende!"

"No! It was an accident, I never meant to…" Karacol pleaded, but his single, faint voice was drowned out by the hundred other voices. He hung his head, closing his eyes for a moment, trying to block the world around him out.

"Look at yourself, then decide." A grave voice echoed from above, and Karacol opened his eyes and suddenly found himself in the Saichoro's hut, surrounded by the elders of Nameksei, with Dende's lifeless body neatly arranged in front of him. But this was different. A cold, eerie blue sphere of flame that seemed to hang from the ceiling lighted the place. The Nameksei-jin were horrifying, all of them, each one with much longer then usual teeth, ears so long that some of them appeared to touch the ceiling, darkened skin seeming to intensify deep cranial ridges, and those same, darkened eyes, each pair seeming to burn directly into Karacol. He glanced down at Dende, but the child's body was no longer burned, instead it looked much worse. It looked similar to the way Karacol had last seen Dende, but without the bandages, and there were even more cuts, and the child's sad, lifeless face covered in purple blood. His robe was saturated purple as well, and the child looked horrifyingly injured. Karacol gazed upwards, tears in his eyes, as the Saichoro stared at him. And then, oddly enough, he began to smile.

"You didn't kill him, you're thinking? Well, look at the evidence. Look at yourself." Karacol shuddered, wondering what the Saichoro meant, when he was aware that his hands felt very different from the rest of his skin. He swallowed and glanced down at his hands, screaming in terror immediately upon gazing at the awful sight. They were covered in purple blood. The world began to swirl away into dust, collapsing into a black void, which seemed to swallow the room up, until Karacol found himself surrounded by the darkness, although he was standing on nothingness. At his feet, Dende's body remained, which sickened Karacol. And then the chant began again, the awful chant that seemed to be following him, as about a hundred pairs of burning eyes, the people of Nameksei, illuminated the darkness. They were still accusing him. He looked around for support from anyone, anything, but found none, as everyone he ever knew continued the horrifying chant, burning it into his mind.

"You killed Dende! You killed Dende! You killed Dende!"

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!" Karacol wailed, trying to fight the awful sounds. But the Nameksei-jin still remained in the void with him, pointing those awful fingers and saying those horrifying words.

"You killed Dende! You killed Dende! You killed Dende!" And, then, quite abruptly, the voices stopped, as the Nameksei-jin faded away and disappeared, save one. Karacol glanced at Dende's body, and cried softly. He looked at the child's burnt and bloody face, as the two deaths had seemed to combine into one, causing him to feel even more sickened, mentally and physically.

Karacol screamed then, a torturing howl that seemed to express how he felt at that moment, as he realized the truth. He was a broken Nameksei-jin, mentally if not physically, and he held his face in his hands and began to cry, as a chilling wind seemed to wrap around him.

"Oh Dende… why… I didn't mean to… where did I go wrong… why… why?!"

Then, with utter simplicity, the dead child's eyes opened as he stared at Karacol, who reared back, terrified. The child said three simple words, each one biting into Karacol's heart like a knife.

"You killed me." Dende said chillingly, his voice a quiet whisper. Karacol screamed then, as the word's sunk into him even deeper. His cry seeming to shatter the black barrier that surrounded him and the child's corpse, and suddenly, with sickening sounds of broken bones and crisped, crackling flesh, the battered child's body stood up, staring at Karacol with cold eyes. The worst was yet to come.

"You already said you hated me. I'll never forgive you. Ever." And with that, quite cruelly, Dende's laughter rang through Karacol's ears. Then other voices joined in with their torture, as Karacol realized he was back in the village where the cycle had started, surrounded by the people of Nameksei. Muuri. Neru. Tulapas. The Saichoro. And others that he couldn't remember. They were all there, laughing at him and accusing him. The evil accusations and laughs completed destroyed what little resolve or sanity Karacol had left. He snapped as the laughter pounded inside him.

"Don't laugh! Stop it! Stop laughing!" Karacol screamed, as trained hands began to form ki. He began throwing ki balls, eliminating the figures in front of him, and the laughter began to die down as each Nameksei-jin died a gruesome death, a pile of dust here, a gaping hole through the chest there. Karacol wheezed, out of breath, gazing at the destruction before him. At last, there would be peace from the accusations. Karacol exhaled, reveling in the peace. Then a familiar laugh chilled him to the bone, as he spun around, a demented look in his eyes. The battered body of the child was still there, staring at Karacol, a sad look etched onto his face. But that wasn't what made Karacol's heart soften. The child looked his normal self, with light green skin, normal ears, and in perfect health. A tear ran down the side of his face, as he observed the bodies of everyone he loved.

"D…Dende, I'm sorry…" Karacol stammered. And then, the nightmare continued. The child's look turned into the same horrifying, evil grin that had been displayed before, normal green Nameksei-jin skin suddenly expanding back into the darker green, demented tone, as Dende's ears once again double in size, and the child's injuries reappeared. Karacol stared at Dende in shock.

"You see Karacol? You hurt everyone…" He said mockingly. Karacol screamed in rage and pierced through Dende's chest with a ki blast, leaving a bloodless hole as the child laughed, even though he was being completely burned, trapped in the intensity of the ki blast. Finally the child's laugh ended abruptly, as the child's blackened shadow of a skeleton, still in the ki beam, finally drifted away, the bones being unable to take any more heat and turning to dust. Then the dust too, faded away. Karacol surveyed the area around him, where every other Nameksei-jin lie dead. At last he could have peace. But then, despite the lack of bodies to convey them, the voices returned, and this time there was nothing he could do to stop them.

"You killed Dende!"

"You killed… me."

And, realizing he would never be free from the torment, Karacol screamed…

…And jolted awake, breathing quickly and rapidly, his pants and long beige colored vest drenched in sweat. He felt sore and terrible, his body aching, as if he had just trained for a long time. Upon standing up and inspecting the patch of blue grass he had apparently been asleep in, he observed that the grass was torn up, and judging by the nightmare he had just had, he had been thrashing around quite a bit during the torturous dream. He gazed up at the two visible stars of Nameksei. They had moved quite a bit since he had last checked them, and he quirked an antenna, wondering how he had managed to remember that after the events that had transpired involving Dende. But he refused to allow himself to cry. The nightmare had wracked his nerves and he still felt very sick, even unappreciated by all the Nameksei-jin on the planet, though this was far from true. But Karacol, saddened as he was and fervently hoping Dende was okay, knew one thing. From here, life could only go up. He walked into the trees, if no one was there to be his friend, then he had better keep himself busy, and though none of the other Nameksei-jin knew it, he loved nature. It was his deepest kept secret. For now, at least, it seemed as if it would be his salvation. He decided to get to work building some kind of shelter. Hard work would keep him from thinking of the past.

Neru sat at the table, quietly sipping on a glass of water, with his head hung low. Muuri was pacing, wondering just how to react. It had been difficult, but Neru had just told the elder everything that had happened. Everything. How Dende had gotten injured, how he had been unable to save him, how Karacol had pulled his prank and screwed it up royally, and how Neru, in a blind rage, had grabbed his brother by the neck and threatened to kill him if he ever returned. Neru was mad at himself by now, feeling guilty for his inability to keep Dende from getting injured and… he felt a twinge of sympathy for Karacol, and regretted the way he had reacted. He wasn't sure how he would react if he saw the other Nameksei-jin again, though. The quiet, dark part of Neru's mood that he tried to constantly eradicate with his guilt remained, and he found himself grinning slightly, even though he knew it was wrong. If he saw Karacol again, he doubted he'd kill him, just rough him up a bit. He shook his head, trying to eliminate that thought out of his mind as well. His rational mind told him that Karacol hadn't meant to hurt Dende at all, especially given his reaction, but there was that little nagging doubt reminding him that Karacol had indeed told Dende that he hated him long ago. What if that hatred had lived on? It would explain why he never talked to Dende…

Muuri interrupted these thoughts with a harumphing sound coming from deep within his throats, as he stared down at Neru. His face was stern, but he didn't look too angry, which didn't surprise Neru, even though he secretly hoped that Muuri was about to punish him. Muuri sighed, but he was glad Neru had told him the truth, and this was his job as the eldest Nameksei-jin in the village, to guide his people rather then having to speak with the Saichoro about every little thing… He sighed and locked his eyes with Neru's.

"Someone's going to have to find Karacol, don't you think? I mean, with the revival festival a little over a rotation away…" Neru nodded slowly, wanting to tell Muuri his true reasons for not wanting to find Karacol but worried that he wouldn't understand. So, he chose option two and sipped his water quietly, deciding to wait for what Muuri was going to say next. It surprised him, but the elder Nameksei-jin's suddenly twisted into an umbrella like shape, as he looked weary.

"You're worried about how you're going to react if you see Karacol again, aren't you?" Muuri asked. Neru choked on his water in surprise, rearing up and staring at the elder with wide eyes.

"H… how did you know?" Neru requested urgently, setting his glass down on the table. Muuri sighed.

"Because I know how it feels to see someone you love hurt, and what a person's reaction is like afterwards… I felt about the same way you're feeling whenever Karacol had messed up and Dende had climbed the Saichoro's mountain… granted, that was a little different because Dende wasn't hurt nearly as bad, but…" Neru sighed, and slammed his glass down on the table, bottling up his rage. Muuri glanced up at the warrior in surprise, his eyes asking for an explanation. Neru glanced down at the table, his voice considerably darker then it had been a moment ago.

"That's… not all of it." He muttered. Muuri sighed.

"What else?" Neru sipped his water, ignoring Muuri's question for a moment and trying to decide whether to tell the elder or not.

"Dende told me one day that Karacol had said he hated him. That's why I'm so angry with him. I… I… What if he threw that rock on purpose?" Muuri glanced at him again, and their eyes meant. Neru was surprised to see a look of sorrow and regret in Muuri's eyes.

"So… you didn't know?" Muuri asked, a tinge of a melancholy sensation mixed in with his stern, wizened tone. Now Neru went on alert.

"Know what?" Muuri sighed and stood up, walking down to where a small trap-door lie in a corner of the room. He tugged it open, revealing a small, dug out, underground room. He walked down and returned presently with a bunch of paper. Nameksei-jin had their own paper, which wasn't made out of trees, but another ingenious adaptation of controlling their ki, much like the skill they normally used to create clothing, rather then having to harm a plant to get fibers.

"Karacol and Dende used to spend quite a bit of time together before Kargo was born, when they were both living here. These are some of Dende's "baby pictures", for lack of a better term." He pulled a particular one out and handed it to Neru. It was a bizarre mix of colors, but Neru chuckled as he recognized two splotches that could only be Nameksei-jin as understood through the eyes of a baby. One was vastly out of proportion in size to the other, so…

"Dende drew a picture of him with me?" Neru asked, wondering what the point of this was. Muuri shook his head and smiled slightly.

"Look at the back, Neru. You might find the answer to one of your questions…" He turned it around and gasped in surprise. There, written in very crude Nameksei-jin handwriting (Apparently Dende had just begun learning how to speak, read, and write during this time.) were two names, or rather, one name and one nickname, and despite the way he felt, still not convinced, he cracked a smile.

Dende and Kar-Kar. Muuri chuckled at Neru's smile.

"You see? Karacol used to spend a lot of time with Dende until about a year ago, when I had punished him. I should have noticed then, but I guess I didn't… It's my entire fault… They had been inseparable… I often wonder what it would look like if the three of you had done things together…" Muuri hung his head. Neru put a hand on the older Nameksei-jin's shoulder, and for the first time since Dende had been injured, his voice adopted a gentle tone.

"Don't think that. It's my fault he's run away now. I didn't realize it then, but he was just as sad as I was when he thought Dende had died. You… you just can't fake sorrow like the kind he expressed. That certainly doesn't look like the kind of emotion a person would show at the death of someone they hated… that's what I was thinking… I let my emotions cloud my judgement." Muuri nodded again, and the two sat there in silence for about a minute. Then, Neru spoke again, taking command and realizing something he had to do, difficult it might be.

"I need to talk with Karacol… He probably still thinks I'm going to kill him, or he'd have been back to check on Dende by now, if he doesn't hate him, as you say. I'm going to go find him and bring him back here, before he gets himself hurt out there or something. Muuri nodded.

"Could you check on Dende before you go? I'd have thought he'd be awake by now." Muuri requested, standing up and leaning on the table. Neru nodded, but as he turned around to enter Dende's room, he looked over his shoulder.

"Elder… do you think that I could… look at some more of Dende's pictures later?" Muuri chuckled, gathering up his crooked staff, which he rarely needed but sometimes liked to keep handy.

"Sure, I'll leave them out for you. I'm going to go check on Tuno in a few minutes." Neru smiled.

"Thanks…" He mumbled. With that he entered Dende's room and froze in the doorway. Muuri observed Neru's stiffening.

"What's wrong Neru? You look as if you've seen a ghost!" Muuri said, trying to joke with Neru. But Neru's eyes had no look of humor inside them as he turned around, looking very concerned. He held Kargo in his arms now, but his concern wasn't for the baby, who was asleep, but for someone else.

"Dende's gone."

His muscles ached, and the child had wished he had stopped to get something to drink before leaving, but it was too late to worry about that now as he continued flying through the air. Dende sighed, not quite sure what was going on but knowing that Karacol was missing. He also had no idea how he had ended up in his bed, although he supposed he must have fallen asleep in mid-air and Neru had caught him... or something. After all, what else could have happened? He had overheard Muuri asking Neru where Karacol was, and at that moment had decided to go out and find him so that Neru wouldn't have to go look for him. Right now, his only thoughts were on finding Karacol so that his idol wouldn't get into trouble. He was slightly worried that Karacol might yell or scream at him, since he knew the older Nameksei-jin hated him, but he didn't care. He flew low over a large patch of trees, and sighted something that intrigued him. It looked almost like a Nameksei-jin house, at least to his three-year-old eyes, but there were large jagged holes punched into it. Thinking he might find Karacol there, he landed next to it, rubbing his tiny hands across the surface. It was cold to the touch. The curiosity of a child diverting him ever so slightly from his previous task, he decided to take a moment to explore this bizarre commodity.

Inside the ship, a myriad of alarms suddenly went off. Smetllack clasped his two massive hands over his ears as Ideo darted over and turned the alarm off, his diminutive form leaning over the one functioning monitor, surveying the readout. Smetllack crossed over and spun the lower-ranking alien around rudely, his dislike of the being just as strong, even though he had managed to save the engine core.

"What's going on?" He demanded. Ideo looked sheepish, his twin fangs on the sides of his mouth seeming to bite down further.

"It appears there is an intruder or life-form that has come in close contact with the ship. It's probably an animal or something, nothing to worry about." Smetllack growled, because his plan to destroy the hundred or so people on this planet depended on surprise. His ally may have been an excellent engineer, but he was a fool when it came to matters of command. No animal would be dumb enough to approach something as out-of-nature as the ship. That took intelligence. He rubbed two hands together and activated his scouter. It chimed a bit, and he glanced around the room before finally gazing at a wall. He laughed.

"It's a life form alright, but a power level that low could only be generated by a child or weakling. Let's go kill it, we may learn if the people of this planet have any special abilities or not, and we can't have anyone telling their friends that our ship is here. Ideo nodded. He didn't savor killing as much as his adversary did, but he… saw its uses. The two began racing through the hallways, towards the exit.

Dende knocked on the strange substance, wondering what the metal was. It certainly didn't feel like anything he had seen before, and he was still curious, even if Karacol wasn't inside the odd saucer-like structure. He knocked a tiny green fist on it again, giggling at the hollow sound it made. But then he heard heavy footsteps dashing up behind him, and before he could react a huge fist imbedded itself in the metal about a foot away from his face. Dende screamed in surprise, turning around and taking in a pink, flabby face that was grinning evilly at him. Had Dende been educated about space and planets yet, he might have realized that this was some kind of alien. But for now, only one thought crept into his mind, and that thought was, _Monster!_ He ducked under the arm and started running, wailing at the top of his lungs and scared out of his wits, when he bumped into something and crashed to the ground. Standing in front of him now was a purple monster, smaller then the other but just as terrifying from Dende's perspective. He tried to run again but found himself cornered, his back against the wall of the ship, in an instant one pink hand was thrust against his chest, pinning him against the ship. He screamed again, taking in the cruel face with those terrifying spike-like horns on top. A moment later he gasped, as the pressure being exerted on him was making it difficult to breathe. The pink monster smiled, reveling in the next moment, when life would be extinguished from this foolish child. He decided that he might as well take a moment or two to terrify the child more and intensify his pleasure.

"What's your name, boy!" He asked gruffly. Dende was surprised that he spoke in a tongue he knew, even though it wasn't Nameksei-jin. Behind the pink one, the purple monster sighed. He just wanted to see his partner kill the child and get it over with, as he enjoyed seeing a good killing as much as the next planet-seller, but didn't believe that the victims should be tortured as much. Business, after all, was business. The child gulped, sweat trickling down his face.

"D…Dende…" He said, his voice a terrified whisper. Smetllack smiled, as he was leading up to the moment when the terror would be most extreme in the child's eyes.

"And how old are you, Dende?" He asked, his voice a bit gentler but still maintaining a gruff tone. It was necessary for the final moment. Ideo rolled his eyes, wondering if his comrade had any semblance of a good joke. In their observation of the terrified Dende, they failed to notice the slight thud of feet creeping up behind them.

"Th…th…three years old…" Dende whispered, glancing around, still unsure of what this terrifying monster was going to do to him, although eating him stuck out first in his mind. The pink monster laughed harshly, which sent a chill through Dende, as he raised his free left hand into a fist, and raised it overhead.

"I regret to inform you that you're not going to live to see four!" He exclaimed cruelly, and with incredible speed, his fist descended towards the child's face. Dende closed his eyes, screaming, too scared even to shed some tears, while the monster's cruel laughter began to resound inside his ears. Suddenly, a pink and green blur smashed into the side of the pink monster. Dende didn't see what happened because his eyes were closed, but he felt a jarring vibration run through his entire body, and then the pressure of a huge hand squeezing his chest disappeared as he toppled to his knees, instinctively bracing himself with his hands. Right as the vibration had taken place, a fierce cry had echoed through his ears, followed by a thumping sound. This was all he knew, not having seen the green and pink blur that was his rescuer. All this left Dende thoroughly confused, but a moment later, he found himself hoisted to his feet, fairly quickly. He looked up and saw…

A purple hand suddenly dart above him and smack his rescuer in the face, before the child could identify him. The rescuer, who Dende had at least seen as a Nameksei-jin, went crashing against the back of the ship with a loud thud. The purple being charged at the Nameksei-jin sprawled on the ground, but was immediately sent flying to the right, as the Nameksei-jin swept his legs above him in a sloppy, yet effective kick from the ground. The Nameksei-jin jumped to his feet and looked at Dende, and that was when the child gasped in surprise, finally recognizing the person. It was Karacol, whose eyes were locked on the two monsters that lay sprawled on the ground, dazed, for the moment. Wasting no time, he spared Dende a sidelong glance, and for once, as he spoke, his tone was laced with seriousness.

"Dende, run awa-" Karacol didn't finish, because Smetllack delivered a fierce-fisted blow to the his chest, taking advantage of his attention towards Dende. He slammed back into the ship again, as he yelped in pain. Two huge pink hands grabbed Karacol around the chest and started squeezing, as Karacol's howl of pain became louder and louder, his eyes clenched shut. Dende froze, wanting to help Karacol but incredibly scared and having no idea what to do. At that moment, just as Karacol thought his chest was going to collapse inward, he remembered a technique. A moment later his eyes shot open and he caught Smetllack clean in the face with two glowing, white-hot beams that exploded from his eyes, a power all warrior Nameksei-jin possessed but rarely used. The alien dropped Karacol and yelped in pain, rubbing at his eyes. Ideo lunged at Karacol as Karacol threw his arms up, locking hands with the purple alien. Managing to subdue him, for the moment, Karacol glanced at Dende again, pleadingly, even as Smetllack began to get his bearings.

"I can't hold them off! Get out of here while you still can, Dende!" Spurred by the urgency in Karacol's voice, along with fear for what was going on, Dende had no choice. He turned and blasted off into the air, tears streaming down his face as the sound of flesh smashing against flesh reached his ears, followed by another intense Nameksei-jin scream of pain.

Special thanks to Tomo-chan, Dendeshe, and Neoslash for their assistance and suggestions on this chapter.


	7. 

Nameksei Before Freezer Chapter 7 ****

Nameksei: Before Freezer

Chapter 7

By Cremrock

Neru searched frantically, looking like a disturbed insect as he darted through the air one way, stopped suddenly, and flew off in another direction. Somehow, in the past few hours, the ancient valley, where he had taught Dende how to fly earlier, had gone insane. Neru could still feel the humming around him, making it easier to control his ki, but it seemed to be having an adverse affect, making explosions of ki all over the place, which, while invisible, were confusing his senses in his hunt for Dende. He thought he sensed the child's ki to the east, but upon arriving it disappeared abruptly, and when Neru arrived he found nothing. He shouted then, his frustration and concern echoing throughout the valley.

"DENDE!"

He perked his ears up, hoping for a reply, but found none. The child wasn't anywhere in this section of the area, or he surely would have heard that. His vest fluttered around him as he hovered in mid-air and closed his eyes, trying to distinguish real ki from fake ki. Normally this was the sort of thing that would Neru would have tried to investigate, as the only other time the valley had done something like this was when he had made the mistake of training here years ago. It seemed the expenditure of large amounts of ki had made the place seem to "echo" with the power, confusing the senses. He had had an extremely difficult time finding his way back to the village that day, and he was worried Dende might be frightened and going through the same thing. He frowned.

"Assuming he's in this area at all, although I would have sensed his ki if he was anywhere else…"

Neru didn't want to tack on to the end of his thoughts, "Unless he's unconscious." Muuri was searching the village for Dende right now, and had said he would contact him telepathically if he found the child, but that didn't help him right now, and he had doubts that Dende was in the village, or the elder would surely have found him by now. True, the ability to fly would greatly protect Dende from much of the area's wildlife, but he was worried about the child's condition. What if he was still hurt, or woozy, or careless or… Neru shook his head. Worrying wasn't getting him anywhere, he had to keep searching!

He thought he felt Dende's ki a few minutes later, but it turned out to be yet another echo, although this one was smaller then the rest. Then it hit Neru as he thought of an idea. If the ki was echoing, then it would surely weaken as it got further away, so all he had to do was follow the weaker ki echoes up to the stronger ones, and with luck he would find Dende, assuming that the child's ki was causing this. He didn't know exactly why it might be causing it, as he had expended much more ki then Dende ever could while flying, but there was always a chance. The valley still held many mysteries. Shouting Dende's name again, Neru sensed a very weak ki and flew off in its direction, hoping that his hastily created plan would work.

Dende flew at top speed, the landscape below him a dizzying patchwork of blue and brown. Tears stung his eyes, but he kept flying, even though Karacol's scream continued to echo in his mind. He hated to see almost anyone in pain, and though he was worried Karacol was still mad at him he began to have second thoughts, realizing that the older Nameksei-jin had saved his life. Could it be that Karacol didn't really hate him? Dende didn't know, but in his young, three-year old mind a bond that had been severed began to open up again, as he found one brief thought enter his mind, before he remembered when he had last seen Karacol, being pummeled by those two awful monsters!

"Maybe he'd be fun to play with."

But that thought didn't matter, as he realized that it was no time to be thinking about playing. He had to find Neru, and… and… a dull throbbing began in Dende's head, and though he didn't realize it, it meant that his ki was weakening, in layman's terms, he was overextending himself. What normally followed that was a loss of senses, and usually exhaustion, followed by unconsciousness if it was kept up for too long after that. Dende continued flying, not realizing the danger of the situation. He tried to ignore the sensation of heaviness in his arms, legs, and eyelids, and kept flying. He had to find Neru.

Karacol dived away as a ki blast tore apart the ground he had been standing on. In front of him, the pink alien, Smetllack, hurled another ki blast, which sizzled by and missed Karacol by mere inches. In the corner of his eye, the smaller, purple alien was trying to maneuver behind him, whether to attack or grab him, Karacol didn't know. Their intent was obviously hostile anyway. He had been forced on the defensive nearly as soon as the battle had started, being outnumbered, and…

_"Outclassed."_ Karacol thought bitterly. Part of the problem was his fighting style, and he now wished he had paid more attention to Neru when the older Nameksei-jin had tried to show him his own personal style. When sparring, Karacol had normally taken the offensive, relying on his finely practiced ki attacks and his speed to defeat his opponents before too much damage had been done. But against Neru, this fighting tactic had never succeeded, because, as Neru had explained, he used a combination of defense and offense in his fighting style. What Karacol would normally dodge, Neru might block and quickly retaliate with an attack of his own. Neru was much better at playing "mind games" and doing what was unexpected then he was. And it was why he was losing horribly. Any time he had tried rushing one of the aliens, trying to take the offensive, the other one had attacked and knocked him away. Persistence clearly was not going to prevail in this case, as he was already beginning to feel a good deal weaker then when the battle had begun. Fortunately he was still relatively unscathed, and he felt he could keep on dodging for quite awhile.

Another yellow-orange blast struck the ground in front of him, a cloud of smoke blinding him for the moment. About two seconds later two hands wrapped around his arms and chest, trying to squeeze the life out of him. Karacol struggled to get free, but couldn't and started fighting desperately even while the purple alien laughed in victory. A moment later his wide-mouthed laugh turned into a howl as Karacol rocked his head back and smashed the alien right in his open mouth, breaking one tooth in half and knocking another out. The grip immediately loosened as the alien clamped two appendages over it's mouth, giving Karacol one second as he whirled around and, with a satisfying CRACK, roundhouse kicked the purple alien across the jaw, who yelped as he flew back about ten feet and lie there, dazed. Karacol barely had time to acknowledge the small victory as a blur behind him materialized into the pink alien and a vicious two-handed blow to the back of his neck knocked him to his hands and knees, screaming in pain. Before he could react in retaliation the pink alien suddenly appeared in front of him and booted him with a savage kick to the chest, sending him flying through the air before crashing to the ground several yards away. The pink alien laughed and went to pull his ally up, believing Karacol to be unconscious.

Karacol felt like he was going to die, even though he knew his injuries probably weren't as bad as they felt. He had landed on his left shoulder hard, and it was probably dislocated. His chest felt as if it was on fire, and considering the sharp crackle he had heard as the alien's last blow had connected, he figured that some of his ribs were broken. He wanted nothing more than to lie down and forget the world, but he knew that if he did that he would die, because these aliens were obviously merciless. Willing his tired, aching body to its feet, he glared in the alien's directions, which stood about twenty yards away. The pink alien laughed upon spying Karacol's battered form. Then he grinned, showing most of his teeth.

"Since you're going to die, weakling, you might want to know the names of the people who will spell the end of your race! I'm Smetllack, and this fellow that you busted up over here is called Ideo." Ideo glared at Karacol but said nothing, still cradling his wounded mouth. Karacol grit his teeth, hoping the aliens would continue speaking for a moment, because he knew this was going to hurt. He grabbed his left arm with his right, and in one sharp pushing motion, jammed it back into place, screaming in pain despite his precautions. A moment later he windmilled it around in a circle and frowned. It still hurt more then anything he had ever experienced, but at least it would move again. The aliens seemed sure of themselves; maybe he could buy himself more time.

"What are you doing on this planet?" Karacol demanded, raising his hands to ward off an attack he knew would be coming soon. "What do you want?" The pink alien, Smetllack, grinned.

"We're here to kill your people, take your technology, and get off this horrid planet of yours. Satisfied?" Karacol's eyes narrowed as a gentle wind swept around the combatants, sending dust everywhere. Karacol had one last card to play, perhaps the aliens could be reasoned with. He was not acting out of cowardice, only trying to see if there was any way to avoid further bloodshed.

"Maybe we can come to an agreement. We are a peaceful race." The pink alien grinned and nodded, and for a moment Karacol thought he might be swayed.

"You'd have to be a peaceful race, as weak a fighter as you are. It's good, because me and my companion are tired. It'll be nice having an easy race to," His face grew into more of a sneer as his voice escalated into a much louder tone, almost a shout. "DESTROY!" And with that, he leapt at Karacol with blinding speed. Karacol dived to the left, cursing himself for letting his guard drop that crucial instant. Before he could roll away and leap to his feet, the being called Smetllack was upon him again, trying to strangle him as two hands wrapped around his throat, choking the Nameksei-jin. Smetllack grinned, watching Karacol make a hollow throated, gasping sound, trying desperately to get some air. Karacol tried desperately to use his eye-lasers again, but Smetllack craned his neck to the side, avoiding them as he laughed.

"Oh no. That won't work again! Now you're going to die!" And he put more pressure on Karacol's neck, knowing that in a moment it would likely shatter from the stress. Karacol had only one thing left to try, as he braced his hands against the ground and expelled as much ki as he could out of them, tearing the ground below him apart and catapulting both alien and Nameksei-jin into the sky. Not pinned to the ground anymore as Smetllack's face contorted in surprise, Karacol grabbed one massive pink arm with his two weakening hands, and pulled, pivoting in mid-air and hearing a surprised snarl as he hurled the massive alien back to the ground with all his might.

Karacol felt light-headed, but he knew he had to finish the battle there, or he might never win. Taking a calculated risk, he dived down at the stunned alien with his fists outstretched, relying on his own power and the momentum of his fall in hopes that he would be able to drive his hands through the alien's chest. He didn't even get halfway when a bluish ki blast ripped through the ignored Ideo's hands and exploded in his face, altering his trajectory and sending him flying into a nearby cliff.

Ideo grinned as he watched the green alien emerge, half of his face was charred black, one eye burned shut, and purple blood streaming from many wounds where the rock had cut him. And his foe still wouldn't quit, easing himself to the ground, and raising his hands again, even though he was off-balance. For a moment, Ideo registered a small inkling of respect for the foe, because a lesser enemy would have remained inside the cliff, nursing their wounds. He clicked his scouter's communicator on so he could whisper to Smetllack, who was staggering to his feet.

"Sir," He barked, "Let's double-team him! I think we can finish him off if we work together!" A harsh voice replied,

"If you'd give me a second, I would finish him! His power level is a lot lower then mine now, I just checked it. Still, we can't waste all our power playing with this gnat. On the count of three we'll charge him! One… two…"

On the count of three, the aliens charged, and Karacol realized that this time, he would not be able to delay the inevitable, now that the two were working as a team. Surprisingly he found himself okay with the fact that, without any assistance, this next series of attacks was probably going to kill him. He clenched his fists, resolving to depart this plain of existence inflicting as much pain as possible.

Neru sensed the next ki echo, and soared off to the right. He was going roughly east, but he had to keep altering his flight slightly to follow the larger ki's, that likely meant Dende was on the move. Still, the ki was getting very close to Dende's level of ability, so he found it likely that he would run into the child in the next few moments. That was when a green blur crashed into his side, as he gasped in surprise and brought his fist up instinctively, about to punch whatever was attacking him. With a start, he recognized almost too late the tear filled, tiny child face of Dende, and his fist stopped mere centimeters in front of his brother's eyes. What surprised Neru was that Dende wasn't happy to have found his favorite grown-up, but that the child WAS crying, which instantly put Neru on alert. Dende sobbed, speaking so quickly that his voice was almost a blur.

"Neruyouhavetohurryorelsehe'lldie!" Neru could scarcely understand what the child was saying, as Dende was obviously very upset. He grabbed the child and held him up to his face, only recognizing a few words, but they were big ones, hurry and die. He found himself grinning though.

"Whoa! Slow down, Dende! What's going on?" Dende demeanor didn't change at the adult's showing of happiness, and that was when Neru started to truly worry. He had initially thought Dende was crying because he hadn't been able to find his way back to the village, but…

"Neru, you gotta hurry! There's two monsters nearby and they tried to hurt me!"

"What?!" Neru exclaimed, "Where are these monsters? How'd you get away? Are you okay?" Dende nodded his head sadly in response to the next question. That was when Neru had yet another shock for the day. Dende sniffled, recalling the painful thoughts from a scant few minutes ago.

"He… he… was squeezing me, I couldn't breathe! "But then Kar-Kar came out of nowhere and saved me! And now they're… I don't know!" Dende sobbed. "He told me to run away!" Neru nodded. Clearly, there wasn't a moment to lose. Neru pointed to some mountains in the distance.

"Dende, listen carefully. You see those mountains? The village is right over them. Tell me where these monsters are, and then go there, okay?" Dende looked into Neru's eyes.

"But Neru… what if something happens to you too?" Neru smiled.

"Nothing's gonna happen to me, now we have to hurry or else Kar-Kar," Neru looked uncomfortable as he pronounced Karacol's nickname, "Might not be around when I get there!" Dende sniffled and nodded, jabbing one tiny finger to the far horizon.

"That's where they are, Neru!" He exclaimed. Neru nodded, and soared off in that direction, flying as fast as he possibly could. He wasn't sure what was going on, but if there were monsters attacking Nameksei-jin, it was his job to investigate. Not to mention that he was concerned for Karacol's life, most of the animosity he had with the younger Nameksei-jin had vanished, now that he realized everything he had done to Dende was a complete accident. Steeling himself for what he might see, he mentally prepared himself for battle.

Dende watched Neru fly off, and after a moment, he followed. He didn't want to disobey Neru's orders, but he was concerned for his friend and wanted to follow. Maybe he could help! The child had no idea his life was going to be in jeopardy, yet again…

They attacked, with ki shimmering all around them, and this time Karacol knew he wasn't going to get out of the way. Two large fists cracked against his jaw and temple, while two others smashed into his abdomen, knocking the wind out of him. He scarcely felt the next blow, stunned as he was, as a massive uppercut smashed against him when he bent down after the hit to his abdomen. He was only half-conscious, just struggling to fight back in anyway he could as he flew up into the air. A moment later the blurred form of Smetllack appeared above him and drove a fist into Karacol's chest, sending him crashing back down to the ground. He hit the ground hard.

Blood streamed from several gashes, and Karacol wasn't even sure he could move now. But he had to try. He managed to stagger upwards into a kneeling position, despite the sharp pain that he felt in his left knee. He gritted his teeth. It was definitely broken. There would be no more kicking with that leg. He stood up, his legs wobbling, and his eyes widened with shock as he realized that neither of the two aliens was in sight. He didn't even see the energy attack that slammed into him from behind, but he sure felt it, as it burned his back to a charred crisp, he wailed, getting knocked back to the ground, every nerve in his entire body exploding with pain. He had a moment to reflect then that he was very lucky. Normally a blast with the intensity he had felt would have gone clean through him, and death would have soon followed. He tried to rise again when a massive hand grabbed him by the back, purposely squeezing it, making the ruined flesh crackle, pop, and tear. The pain was unbearable, and Karacol screamed again and again, unable to talk, drowning out the thunderous chuckles from Smetllack, his torturer, who was enjoying watching his opponent suffer.

Hot, purple blood ran from Karacol's destroyed back, oozing over Smetllack's hand. To anyone else, even his partner Ideo, the screams coming from the dying Nameksei-jin were horrible. But they were music to his ears. He was glad that his foe was so tough, because it meant he could listen some more. He flipped the being around, making sure to provide just as much pressure on the creature's back, raising him so that their eyes locked. He grinned, reveling in the look, as he had a million times in the past. This being was in so much pain that it wanted nothing more then to die, and die it would. But… He laughed harshly. Not a quick and easy death. Those screams were just too tantalizing. He'd give him another five minutes at least. He was so wrapped up in the sheer joy of torturing and tormenting what little of this being's existence remained that he didn't even hear the Nameksei-jin battle cry. What he did notice was a large, purplish blur fly over his right shoulder and smash into the nearby rock face, before bouncing off and landing facedown on the blue grass. That was when he realized that, amazingly enough, the screams of his victim had stopped. He looked at the being he was crushing and caught a small, barely noticeable grin through blackened flesh and purple blood. His eyes widened.

"What are you so happy abo-" He gasped in mid-sentence as something very hard struck him in the back of the head, causing him to drop Karacol and tumble forward, rolling a few feet before stopping.

Karacol glanced up at Neru from his prone position on the ground, his teeth clenched. He was obviously doing his best to keep from screaming again, or perhaps he was so far gone that he just didn't have the strength. Neru peered down at him, his face wearing a stern expression.

"Are you okay, brother?" He quipped. Karacol winced as pain shot through his back for a moment, then nodded, his sense of humor showing through, despite the wretchedness of his situation. When he did gather up the energy to speak, his voice was hoarse, and very, very weak.

"I… thought you were going… to kill me?" He gasped, but the tinge of humor in his voice was still there. Neru grinned for a brief moment.

"I think you've done a good enough job of that yourself. Who are these people, anyways?" Karacol groaned then spoke again, and for a moment Neru worried that despite his efforts, the younger Nameksei-jin was going to die anyways.

"I don't know," Karacol winced, shuddering, and then continued. "They said they were here to… to kill all of us…" Neru's eyes widened, as he glanced up at the pink alien struggling to stand up. He tensed. That was all he needed to hear, and given Karacol's current state of health, they definitely weren't going to want to talk things over. The pink alien approached, and stared at Neru, his pupils bulging.

"How dare you hit me from behind! I'm gonna kill you slowly for that!" He rasped. Neru glared at him.

"Leave this planet now, and never come back." He said sternly. Smetllack laughed, and clenched his fists.

"Is everyone on this planet as cowardly as you? Your charred friend over there tried to talk things over and look where it got him! You're just lucky because you hit me from behind, that's all. In a moment I'll be listening to both of your dying screams. It'll be a duet!" Neru reached over his shoulder and tossed his long dark vest off with a single flick of his wrist.

"This is your last chance to leave this planet without getting harmed." Neru admonished. Smetllack smiled.

"This is your last chance to put that hand of yours to your own neck and snap it, so you can spare yourself the agony I'm going to put you through." Smetllack said ominously. Neru glanced down at Karacol, whose eyes were half-closed, his breathing becoming shallower by the minute.

"Hang on, Karacol," He whispered gravely, "I'll finish this quickly."

Smetllack made the first move, charging at Neru, attempting to crush the Nameksei-jin warrior under the bulk of his weight, hoping to end the fight before it had barely begun. Neru jerked to the left and dodged a blow that would surely had been strong enough to crack open his skull. His opponent was strong, but he knew that he was much stronger. He couldn't just sense it, he knew it, and finally after all of his training, the day he knew would one day come had arrived. Something was threatening Nameksei, and the beings had already defeated Karacol. If he lost, then the Saichoro, Muuri, Dende… everyone would die, and he simply wouldn't let that happen. This simple fact alone motivated him to fight as hard as he could, and he did, dodging two more incredibly powerful blows, watching for the opening he knew his opponent was going to leave. A moment later, Smetllack made the mistake of not focusing completely on the fight.

"Hold still, runt! I can't kill what I can't catch! You can't even hurt me if you run away!" Neru grinned so slightly that Smetllack couldn't see it, darting under one massive pink arm and punching the alien so hard that his chest armor cracked, stunning the alien, but only for a moment. Neru kicked the monster hard between the legs (Ouch) sending him flying up in the air, and then he blurred out of the spot he had been standing in and appeared above the surprised alien, who was totally off-guard now. A moment later he locked his legs together and planted them both squarely in the alien's back with tremendous force, sending him screaming and crashing back to the ground, hitting so hard he created a rounded, fairly large crater. Neru hovered above it, scowling. A moment later the ground exploded outwards as Smetllack rocketed into the air, minor cuts and gashes all over his face, some bleeding slightly. He spat out a clout of blood and then stared at Neru, who was unscathed. The Nameksei-jin wasn't smiling or showing any sign of victory. Instead, he crossed his arms and frowned.

Neru's calm demeanor aggravated him, and feeling his rage begin to intensify, Smetllack charged again. Neru screamed and ripped through the air himself, as the two clashed head on. Smetllack landed a few punches on Neru, but Neru was used to punishment. Smetllack changed his strategy and lunged for Neru's neck, trying to strangle him in what was obviously his preferred method of attack, but Neru brought his knee up hard, smashing it into Smetllack's chest again, and this time the armor shattered, as pieces of the material fell to the ground. The armor had helped block some of Neru's blows before, but with it gone, Neru saw his foe's weak point, and slammed a fist into his chest before chopping the monster in the neck and tossing him to the ground. This time, Smetllack did not rise, only lying prone and moaning weakly. A moment later there was a terrified shriek, and then Neru spied the other alien dashing for his spaceship. He smiled inwardly, glad he wasn't going to have to harm the other alien.

Ideo charged through the battered remains of the ship, terrified beyond belief. He had been glad to see the braggart Smetllack get taken down, but now he was worried that the huge green alien was going to hurt him too! He already had his plan in mind, he would leave this accursed planet, and hope that the ship's damaged engines would be enough to get him to one of master Freezer's planets. He sighed. At least he had managed to refill the oxygen tanks during their short tenure on this planet. He finally came across the bridge, scrambled into a chair, and pushed several buttons, pleased that he was alive and was going to escape from the place.

Neru landed next to Karacol and watched in disbelief as the huge metal structure, which Neru assumed was what the aliens had arrived in, flew into the sky with a thunderous roar. It began twirling around, several yellow and purple lights began blinking, and then in the blink of an eye, it was gone, flying away from Nameksei with incredible speed. Neru glanced down at Karacol, and reached down and pulled his wounded body to it's feet, smiling slightly. Karacol stared at him.

"I'm sorry Neru." Neru quirked an eye ridge, wondering what his wounded brother was talking about.

"What?"

"I'm sorry I pulled that prank and hurt Dende…" Karacol said forlornly, with a twinge of sadness in his voice. Neru shook his head.

"Don't worry about that now, it's in the past. Besides, Dende told me you saved him from that alien. I overreacted and let my emotions control me when I told you I wanted to kill you," Neru chuckled. "Hope you didn't take it too personally." Karacol grinned.

"Neru! Neru!" Karacol and Neru turned their heads and saw Dende scrambling towards them, grinning. The Nameksei-jin boy stopped about five feet away and glanced around, surveying the crater, noticeable lack of the alien spaceship, and the fallen Smetllack, who was still lying about ten yards away from him. He sighed. "Well, I guess you didn't need my help…" Dende's eyes went wide as he spied Karacol's wretched condition.

"Waaah! Karacol! Are you okay!" Karacol smiled weakly, trying to make a joke, and genuinely surprised that Dende was concerned for him. He managed to get to his feet and stagger a few steps closer towards the brightly smiling child.

"Yeah, never felt better. The important thing is, are you okay?" Dende grinned and nodded his head. That was when the unthinkable happened, as a grunt from the fallen Smetllack occurred, and he got on his hands and knees with incredible speed. From that moment on, as traumatizing, intense moments often do, the world seemed to slow down for Karacol, as he saw the critically wounded alien smile through a blood filled mouth, and point a single finger at Dende. Neru, caught off guard, didn't have time to react, and Dende screamed, startled by the alien's sudden movement. He felt his own eyes grow wide with shock, as Smetllack seemed to glow, and a small yet deadly ki bolt lanced towards the child. Karacol's body hurt as he twisted awkwardly, his mouth wide open in an expression of horror that conveyed some determination, as one thought rippled through his pain-filled mind.

"I won't let him hurt you!"

With a catastrophic effort, Karacol summoned what little energy he had and pushed off the ground with both his feet, ignoring the sharp crack of his wounded knee shattering into several smaller pieces. Dende threw his hands up over his eyes as a blinding flash and a pain-filled scream filled Neru's eyes and ears. A moment after that, smoke billowed around where the ki blast had struck, and Neru couldn't see.

He screamed then, a scream of pure rage, as his ki shot up almost unintentionally. What happened next was both fully intentional and, in an evil way, fully satisfying, as Neru turned his open right palm towards Smetllack and extended his ki into an incredible wave of energy that was unfocused yet insanely powerful, making an eardrum-shattering high pitched screech that continued for several seconds. When Neru finally relaxed, releasing the power, all that remained of Smetllack was a smoking black hole in the ground. He struggled to contain his rage then, and gazed up at the sky. He had done it. Nameksei was safe, for now. But then he turned back to the billowy smoke behind him, and his heart raced with fear..

He could only gaze at the smoke in shocked silence, mouth wide open, silently mouthing a single word multiple times,

"No… no! Dende?! Karacol?!" He cried urgently. A moment later he heard a high pitched wail, and his antennae perked up. Only a living being could make that kind of sound, but he still couldn't see through the smoke… mercifully, a breeze blew away, and as it cleared he spotted Dende, rubbing his eyes and crying, although he appeared to be unhurt.

Neru glanced down and saw the most pitiful sight he had ever seen, and he recoiled in horror, even as Dende continued sobbing. Lying there, with one leg completely burned off, the other was twisted at an angle so acute it could only mean it was broken at the knee. It was attached to a badly beaten Nameksei-jin, if the body could even be called that. The arms were badly burned, and a scorched, 4 inch wide ragged hole perforated most of his chest. His face was the worst, with one eye actually BURNED shut. A six-inch gash marked the Nameksei-jin's forehead, and his face was literally bathed in blood. Adding to this were a number of minor cuts and gashes that gave him a very haggard appearance. Dende glanced up at him through tear filled eyes, as they both stood over Karacol.

"You… you can fix him, can't you Neru? Someone can help him… right?" Dende stammered. Neru said nothing as a pang of emotion rippled through him. Karacol had goofed before, and had caused both he and Dende grief, but… he had sacrificed himself not once, but twice for Dende. He felt his strength go out of his legs as he fell to his knees at Karacol's side. He pounded the ground in anger.

"Curse my strength! I shouldn't have let my guard down! And now… look at it." Dende's eyes widened as he looked up, but Neru wasn't speaking to him. He wasn't speaking to anyone actually, just letting his voice pass through the empty, burnt smelling air. "It should have been me! DAMN IT, (There it is folks, the one swear word in the story! I'm so proud of me! And not one reference to pissing off the god of- D'oh!) IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN MEEEEEEE!" Neru's voice got hollow as he bowed his head down, surveying his brother again. "Now you're dead, Karacol. And it's my entire fault, this time. You always played pranks, but this was real… and I failed. You're not the failure, you did everything you could, you saved Dende, you held those aliens off… I'll admit, I treated you harshly, but… in the end, you proved me wrong. You didn't kill Dende, you… you… saved him. You're… you're a much better Nameksei-jin then me… rest… rest we-" Overcome by emotion by now, Neru's voice trailed off. Then a hoarse, ragged sound rang in both Dende and Neru's ears, as Neru's tear filled eyes shot open. A mouth, a mere line covered by a smattering of purple blood, inched upwards ever so slightly.

"I… I… never knew you… cared… brother." Karacol whispered, his chuckle sounding more like a ragged cough. Neru glanced up at Dende, as suddenly both child and warrior hugged Karacol. Then Neru quickly let go of him, antennae inching up above his eyes in shock.

"You… you… YOU WERE FAKING IT! YOU SON OF A…" Karacol somehow found the strength to reach one charred hand up and slam it in front of Neru's mouth.

"Neru… not in front of the kid." Neru glared, and lightly pushed Karacol's arm away. He stood up and grinned, even as Dende continued to hang onto Karacol. He picked up the Karacol and slung him over his shoulder, even while Karacol winced. Neru glanced at Dende, who was holding Karacol's hand, despite the wounded Nameksei-jin's position. Karacol had slumped back into unconsciousness.

"C'mon Dende. It's time to go home."

In a moment, the trio had already vanished on the horizon, heading for Muuri's village.

It's not over yet, folks! Just one more chapter to go! Thanks to Tomo and Dendeshe for some much appreciated feedback! ~Cremrock


	8. 

Nameksei: Before Freezer Chapter 8 ****

Nameksei: Before Freezer

Chapter 8

By Cremrock

_Minor Warning: This chapter is a little graphic near the end. I don't think I went too overboard (In my opinion Karacol got beat up worse then this) but keep in mind it's the villain that gets hurt here, they slaughtered thousands of people, they deserve it, blah blah blah blah… If you're the squeamish type, the last part with the villains is more ironic and thoughtful then necessarily important to the story…It can be skipped (How optimistic I am, eh?). Enjoy! ~Cremrock_

Muuri paced around the house, hunting for Dende. By now, the entire village had been alerted about what was going on, and now it seemed he was practically tripping over other Nameksei-jin searching for Dende. The decorating had been postponed, and from what he had heard even more Nameksei-jin from the other villages were hunting now. In fact, soon the Saichoro would be arriving himself, escorted by the Nameksei-jin from the farthest two villages. Muuri had forgotten about him before, but he knew that their elder would be able to locate Dende instantly with his telepathic abilities… he only wished he had thought of sending someone to ask.

"There's no helping that now… I wonder if he went outside of the village and Neru found him?"

Kargo started wailing from his basket, and Muuri went over to comfort him, picking up the child and rocking him in his arms a bit. The child stopped wailing and looked up with sparkling eyes, a forlorn expression on his face.

"You're worried about him, aren't you?" Muuri mumbled.

"Kar-kar!" The child squeaked. Muuri chuckled.

"Yes, I'm worried about him too…" Muuri muttered, he was completely missing the obvious. Kargo frowned, expecting more attention. He started tapping Muuri's arms with his tiny fists. Muuri glanced at him and trotted over to the shelf, reflexively picking up a hollow-necked baby sized jug of water, sticking it in Kargo's mouth. The baby's eyes widened, but he started drinking the water after a moment. Muuri sat down in the most comfortable chair in the house. He didn't like waiting, but the younger Nameksei-jin had said he should probably stay and look after Tuno some more. The elder Nameksei-jin still hadn't awakened, but he had never been a light sleeper. Theoretically, he could have ordered one of the younger Nameksei-jin to stay here and watch Kargo and Tuno so that he could go search himself, but he forced himself to admit that he just couldn't move around as quickly as he used to. Kargo continued sucking down the water, still looking annoyed, as Muuri steeped his hands together, sighing softly.

"It's so bothersome getting old…"

Neru was pleased that Dende had been doing so well. He was both managing to keep pace with him, and more importantly, he was talking to Karacol, who seemed to be drifting in and out of coherency, saying a weak reply the next, and babbling some nonsense the next. He had to fly faster, the Nameksei-jin was fading fast, having already been beaten to within an inch of his life. Neru shook his head as he recalled Karacol's injuries... He wished he had gotten there sooner, but it couldn't be helped now. There was always the chance that he could bind the dying Nameksei-jin's wounds better, but… he wasn't about to slow down and inspect him again. There simply wasn't enough time or materials, and his vest had already been torn to shreds. He knew Karacol was tough, indeed he had helped make him that way. Oddly enough, he smiled slightly. Nameksei-jin could certainly die from lesser injuries then the ones Karacol had, and Neru wondered if perhaps the only thing keeping him alive was will alone. That was why he had gotten Dende to begin talking with him more, so that Karacol would have something to focus on, to stay conscious. He spared a glance over his shoulder, in case Dende was having difficulty again. Beads of sweat trickled down the child's face, but he was determined to keep up.

"You two are doing fine… just a little further." He thought. He considered shouting encouragement, but he didn't want to distract himself.

"Wow! You mean you really came close to beating Neru before I was born?" Dende asked enthusiastically impressed by Karacol's recent boast. Karacol shuddered; his voice a gasping whisper, but still maintaining just a tinge of humor.

"Heh… yeah… just came with- within…" Karacol's eyes closed as his face contorted in pain, and Neru felt his body tense. Dende gasped. Neru, knew he couldn't help anymore then he had, so he ignored them, focusing on his flying trying to reach the village as quick as he could. A heart-wrenching moment later, Karacol's body relaxed again as his eyes lolled open, one antennae twitching lazily. "…A stone's throw, I did!" Dende relaxed, but there was a look of despair in his eyes. He was still too young to know a whole lot about the concept of death, but he had heard stories about it… Nameksei-jin believed in educating their children about the cycle of life very early, and repeatedly. On a planet where your entire race save for one individual had been wiped out, a child might need to know these things… it had happened once, it could happen again.

This had been one of the exact reasons the Saichoro had created the Dragonballs, but they had their limitations… not to mention that no one knew where they were. The only thing that Neru knew was that they were each hidden somewhere around the villages, and not even the elders knew where they were. He figured the Saichoro would know where they were hidden… he still remembered the sight of the massive dragon, Porunga, and a part of him hoped they would never actually need to call upon him. He glanced back at Karacol again. They could always use those to help him, but… Neru had a theory. The Saichoro had seemed slightly weakened those years ago when they had been used to revive a child…

"Yes, that's the way Neru." He thought to himself. After all, it was his sworn duty to protect the Saichoro at all costs. _"Just keep that thought… the Saichoro will die if the dragonballs are used, so you have to make sure Karacol survives so that they don't need to be used…" _He frowned slightly as he shook his head. He knew this wasn't true, and was having a hard time making himself believe it… He wasn't about to give up, though. The village was surely over just a few more mountains. Dende was running out of things to say, but he managed to keep Karacol talking, asking him questions like what had he done when he was three and engaging in a conversation over which water tasted the best and why… Neru smiled again, although happiness was not his most dominant emotion right now. Oddly enough, the emotion was pride in both of them.

_"Hang on just a little longer… brother."_

Muuri suddenly became aware that the cries of "Dende!" and "Where are you?" tittering around his home and village had stopped. A hope leapt into him, as he scooped up Kargo (Who was still sucking on the jug looking annoyed, although it was surely empty by now,) and dashed through the curtain he had hung over the entranceway, out into the hot Nameksei-jin suns. He glanced left, and his eyes widened, even as Kargo emitted a happy sounding shriek and threw his jug to the ground, which shattered into half a dozen large pieces. Sitting in a large, ancient-looking chair, was the Saichoro himself. He was amazed, not just at seeing their father, who sat with his patient grin, gentle eyes, and kindly (And perhaps kingly too, although Nameksei-jin didn't believe in royalty) wrinkled face. He was also astounded that they had somehow managed to land the chair without alerting him. Standing next to the chair were four warrior Nameksei-jin, the Saichoro's honor guard, although they were not his normal contingent. Neru and Karacol should have been standing in the front, but instead Tulapas and some Nameksei-jin whose name escaped him at the moment were standing there. The Saichoro himself was mumbling a few kind words to his children, before looking up. Upon spying Muuri, although his face was gentle, the Saichoro made a slight harumphing noise deep in his throat, and the other Nameksei-jin gathered around him looked at him expectantly. Muuri blinked for a moment as the others stared in silence, then it hit him.

"Of course, except for him, I'm the oldest Nameksei-jin here! It's my job to tell him what's going on!"

He stumbled up to the Saichoro's feet, still clutching Kargo, who by now was squirming in Muuri's arms, trying to break free in hopes of reaching his father's feet. Muuri cleared his throat and tried to look serious.

"Greetings, father! We're glad you could make it… I apologize for not coming out sooner, but…" The Saichoro held up a hand, understanding completely. He smiled that wrinkled grin that he had displayed so often, beaming with love and pride for his children.

"Peace, Muuri, there's no need to be so formal… after all, this is a time of celebration!" Muuri sighed.

"Things are a bit of a mess right now, sir… Dende and Karacol are missing, and Neru's out hunting for them now. You see, there was an accident… Karacol accidentally hurt Dende while Neru was teaching him, and he nearly died… " Muuri sighed, as it was difficult to tell this story. "But Neru brought him back, and elder Tuno healed him… but Dende must have slipped away because he's missing now, and Neru went out to find him while we searched the village. It's all my fault, I should have been keeping an eye on them, after all…" Muuri hung his head.

"It wasn't your fault, my son." Compassion and understanding were laced around and within the Saichoro's voice, as Muuri looked up, surprised. "Please, let me relieve you of your fears…" With that, the Saichoro closed his eyes reflexively, gripped his chair a bit tighter, and after a short pause, he opened them again and pointed to the sky at his left.

"They're coming right now, all three of them." Muuri smiled, but the Saichoro had not finished as he frowned slightly. "Something's wrong, I can feel it. Something important has happened…" The Nameksei-jin group burst into confused murmuring, wondering what could make their father so concerned. Muuri's heart pounded in his chest.

"Oh no… I hope Dende is all right. He's been through so much today…"

Kargo stopped squirming and frowned.

"Kar-kar!" He announced. No one paid any attention to him. He jabbed one of his tiny fists into Muuri's gut. "Kar-kar!" He tried again. Muuri glanced down at him.

"Not now Kargo, this is not a good time to ask for more water!" Muuri snapped. The baby hung its head, it's tiny antennae drooping down with the rest of its face.

"Kar-kar…" He said forlornly.

A moment later, his face still lined with concern, the Saichoro looked to the right, even as Tulapas (He had been standing next to the Saichoro, taking Neru's place as the honor guard.) looked up and announced stupidly,

"They're here, they're here!" Muuri saw them in the distance, a group of tiny dots getting closer. He heard a Nameksei-jin gasp, and frowned. Something was wrong…

"Curse these old eyes! I hate this…" Muuri glanced at the Saichoro, who had given up trying to squint and was standing patiently. But gradually, as the younger Nameksei-jin began to shout and shudder, Muuri became aware that something was very wrong. A few of the adults put their hands over the eyes of the children, easing them to play in another direction. When he realized what was going on he gaped, and Kargo started wailing. Neru frowned, his eyes betraying his emotion. Dende trailed behind him, looking perturbed, occasionally wiping his eyes, as if he was about to cry. In Neru's arms, his eyes closed, his chest rising and falling a mere centimeter, lie Karacol. He looked like death, ten times worse then Dende had looked earlier that day, if that were possible. Muuri found himself unnerved, and had to look away upon spying Karacol's charred stump of a leg. A moment later the Nameksei-jin in the center of the square leapt away, as Neru landed quickly on his feet. He went down on one knee, glancing up at the Saichoro, who had put one massive hand to his mouth in shock. Muuri groaned. Neru was always one to pride respect and honor, but he changed his mind when he stood back on his feet a moment later, yelling,

"I need a Nameksei-jin who can heal! Now, please!" Shocked whisperings billowed through the crowd, and Neru shuddered, as Dende landed next to him, crying softly, mumbling,

"Please, please help Karacol!" Over and over again, his childish voice a mere drop in the bucket when compared to the sounds coming from the crowd. Muuri hung his head and stared at the ground… He knew more about healing then some Nameksei-jin, and it were the healers that knew this "golden rule" above all else. Never try to heal someone whose wounds are too great, or you might overexert and kill yourself. The same thing had nearly happened to Tuno earlier that day. Actually, he had spied a few hints of the arts in Dende, but such powers only came early under extenuating circumstances, although they were usually predominant when the Nameksei-jin reached maturity. Muuri would gladly sacrifice his own life to save Karacol's, seeing as it would be his duty as the elder of the village. Problem was, he didn't have the talents. And looking around the village, he soon became aware that no one was skilled enough to heal Karacol without harming, no, killing themselves. The Nameksei-jin gathered around him looked grim faced, and some of the younger children were crying softly.

Muuri pondered the terrible thought… would they be forced to watch Karacol die? Asking another Nameksei-jin to sacrifice himself for the warrior would be asking far too much… Then he realized that once again, the sounds of the crowd speaking among themselves had stopped. He glanced at Neru, whose eyes were wide, his face shrouded in shadow. Dende turned around a moment later and his jaw dropped, as hushed cries rang through the crowd. There, for the first time in years, standing on his own two feet, unsupported by subject or chair or staff, stood the Saichoro, glancing down at Neru, Dende, and Karacol, regret etched plainly and completely on his face.

"Forgive me," He murmured, "I should have been more vigilant on the going ons of the planet this cycle. (A Nameksei-jin week) He managed to find the strength to bend down slightly, putting one massive hand over Karacol, who, despite being unconscious, seemed to relax, even smile slightly at his father's touch. Neru was about to protest, not because he didn't want Karacol healed, but because he had no idea if the Saichoro's means of healing were any different then the other healers, and he wasn't five-hundred years old any more. He might be endangering his own life, and it was Neru's duty to prevent that from happening. A moment later, it was too late to protest, as from in between the massive spaces of his fingers, a ruby red, scintillating light began to shine. Every Nameksei-jin present heard a faint hum, steadily getting louder, it's chime-like resonance sounding almost like the most beautiful music any of them had ever heard. Muuri and Neru both considered stopping him for fear that the Saichoro would kill himself, until they told themselves that breaking the Saichoro out of his concentration might do the exact same thing. A moment later the light and sound stopped as the Saichoro sat back down, breathing a bit heavier, but smiling. Karacol's body was completely unscathed now, all traces of his injuries gone. He remained unmoving, however. Neru knew he was okay, and rolled his eyes, since Karacol was probably trying to play a prank by feigning unconsciousness. Kargo broke free from Muuri's arms at about the same time Dende darted away from Neru. Neru was impressed by the sidesplitting look of surprise on Karacol's face as the two tiny Nameksei-jin "Torpedoes" jumped full-force onto his chest. Karacol, ever the prankster even with this one spoiled, leapt to his feet (With a Nameksei-jin child hanging onto each arm) and raised an eye-ridge, glancing at all the smiling and applauding Nameksei-jin around him.

"Okaaaaaaaay… what'd I miss?" He requested. Muuri and the Saichoro both glanced at Neru, their dark eyes practically begging him for an explanation. Neru cleared his throat.

"Well…"

Neru told the story vividly, not leaving out any details. He told of Karacol's heroics, Dende's determination, and his own confrontation with the aliens. He knew that the other Nameksei-jin knew that he and Karacol were kind people, but he decided to stress anyway that they both had given the aliens a chance before defending themselves. Neru didn't notice it since his attention was primarily focused on addressing the Saichoro and crowd behind him, but Muuri had been surprised when Tuno, not fully recovered but well enough to walk again, had slipped up behind him. Oddly enough, during this time Dende had walked back over to Neru's side, but Kargo remained at Karacol's feet, hoping to be noticed. When the story had finally been told, the Saichoro nodded sagely, and there was a moment of silence.

It was clear that he was wrestling with a difficult decision, and was pondering his next action. Neru knew what that decision might be, even if the other Nameksei-jin didn't. They maintained a respectful silence, and he spared a glance at Muuri and Tuno. The elders knew what the decision was as well, but they did not look worried or sad in the least. Neru sighed. Whatever was going to happen next was necessary, but he did hope Dende wouldn't be disappointed.

"My children, I extend my deepest apologies, but in light of these recent events, I feel that… these matters must be discussed immediately among myself and the elders. This festival will have to be postponed for a span of ten rotations." A few of the younger children's faces fell, but other then that, there was not the air of melancholy that Neru was expecting. Indeed, some of the adult Nameksei-jin smiled, and even as the crowd burst into chatter, some of the main planners of the festival were commenting that it was the right decision, and that this way there was more time to make it enjoyable by all.

He glanced down at Dende, but there was no sadness in the child's eyes, as he looked up at Neru questioningly. There was so much more to be happy about, and a seed had been planted, a seed of maturity, of resisting hardships both emotional and physical, that neither he nor the Saichoro knew would be desperately needed in the coming years. Question wasn't all he saw in the child's eyes. He saw respect, admiration, and love… and he realized how his own emotions had changed in the recent events. He wasn't worried about the burden of guardianship now. He wanted to face a new challenge. He placed a clawed hand on the child's forehead. Dende beamed, wondering what his mentor wanted.

"Hey Dende, can you wait here a bit? I need to go talk to Muuri about something, okay?" The child nodded, and crossed over to where Kargo and Karacol were. Karacol was gazing up at the sky, and Kargo was getting restless.

"Kar-Kar!" The baby whined. Dende's eyes widened in shock, and Karacol felt the tinge of surprise and glanced down at Dende.

"H…hi Dende!" He stuttered. After all, he still felt a tinge of blame for his injuries, and he hadn't actually formally said that he didn't hate him. Dende smiled, his eyes widening with a tinge of respect, and above all, thankfulness.

"Hello! Um…" Dende glanced down at the ground, his face purple. "Thanks for saving me…" Karacol smiled.

"Don't worry about it, Dende… I'm sorry I said I hated you that one day. It was a long time ago, but…" Dende shook his head.

"Nah, you're a nice person. I'm… uh, I'm glad you're oka-"

"KAR-KAR!" Kargo interjected, and Karacol glanced down at the baby, as Dende's eyes widened again. He did, after all, live with the child.

"Ka- Kargo? When did you learn to say that?" Dende asked, bending down and looking the baby in the eyes. Karacol eyed Dende and Kargo dubiously. The baby smiled up at Karacol, finally achieving recognition. Karacol was stunned, but picked the baby up as it squealed happily. Karacol stared at him.

"Dende, what does this…" He said warily. Dende cupped a tiny hand around his chin, then finally realized it, and excitement grew in his face.

"You don't know? Karacol! That's so neat! You're Kargo's first word!" Karacol's eyes bulged, even as Dende jumped around merrily, stopping when he noticed Neru and Muuri coming up behind Karacol.

"W…what?!" A slight harumphing sound interrupted Karacol's surprise, and he turned to see the two Nameksei-jin grinning behind him. Muuri looked slightly embarrassed, as he realized that Kargo had been saying that the entire time, but he decided not to tell them. It would just make the story less enthralling when it was sure to be retold in a few years.

"I wouldn't be so surprised, Karacol. Kargo's always been crazy whenever he's seen you, he thinks he was named after you." Muuri explained, and Neru nodded.

"He…he does?" Then he grinned, reverting to his humor in a weak effort to hide his emotions. "Well?" He quipped. Neru raised an antenna, wondering what Karacol was getting at.

"Well what?" Muuri asked, not understanding.

"Was he named after me?" Dende giggled, putting both hands over his mouth, and Neru cracked a smile. Muuri glanced at both of them, then nodded.

"You can believe what you want to." Muuri grinned. "After all, we know you'll just run around telling everyone that he was named after you now anyway." At this, the entire group burst into laughter, and Muuri led the way to his home. Neru had important news to tell Dende. Karacol followed, still carrying Kargo. He had to admit he liked the idea of a child looking up to him. He glanced at Dende and Neru. The pair was inseparable, and though he knew that he had botched his chances of having the same relationship Neru did with Dende, he hoped he could be the next best thing… a friend. Kargo started playing with his antennae, and he grinned. It appeared he would have a child of his own to mentor, anyway.

The two suns shone brightly on the sparkling Nameksei-jin Lake, the luminescent light brightening the water's surface and making it look even more beautiful then it did. The crystal clear water, bright, narrow green trees, and purplish mountains in the distance made it look almost picturesque, fine enough to be adorned on a postcard, if the Nameksei-jin had believed in such things. The sky was a lovely shade of bright blue green, and there wasn't a cloud to be seen. A Nameksei-jin bird, it's stunning red and pink feathers a contrast to the beautiful yet drab greenness of the tree, alighted on a branch, and took off a moment later, startled by the battle-cries, giggles, splashes, and whoops coming from the nearby lake. It peered at the four creatures a moment as it soared off over to the horizon, it's mind not sophisticated enough to reflect on the fact that those four creatures sure were noisy.

The four of them, Karacol, Kargo, Neru, and Dende, were in and around the lake. Karacol was clad in his normal yellow vest and white pants, standing on the lakeside, preparing to launch another flurry of blows through the air, since he was training. He didn't really like immersing himself in water, and could hardly swim at all. Kargo was frolicking in the grass nearby, sweat trickling down his face. He was vestless, clad in a pair of orangish colored pants. He clearly would have enjoyed going in the water, but was content imitating and watching the events going on. Neru and Dende were both in the water, wearing identical (Albeit a bit bigger on Neru) turquoise colored shortly cut pants, the loose cloth coming down about to their knees. Neru's vest and Dende's robes were on the shore, a few meters away from Kargo. Neru was giving Dende a lesson.

Dende sputtered, coughing noisily, and Karacol was forced to chuckle slightly at the child's look of surprise. Dende managed to hear the chuckle and glanced in his direction, grinning slightly as soon as he was able.

"I don't see you trying this, Karacol!" He said jokingly. Karacol just looked smug and said nothing, concentrating on his next assault, even while Neru observed the exercise from his position in the water, about ten meters away. He watched the younger Nameksei-jin flip through the air, kicking and punching at imaginary targets, and chuckled. Both he and Dende burst into laughter a moment later when Kargo emerged from the tall grass nearby and started flailing his arms and legs wildly, before falling on his rump, trying to imitate his mentor. He started wailing, and Karacol ran over to console him, forgetting his training for the moment.

Neru reflected on the day. It was a bit of a role-reversal, since Karacol was training and he was relaxing, but he didn't mind. He still had a mission of his own to accomplish, as he turned and observed Dende, paddling to stay afloat.

"Okay Dende, remember, to float, you just have to lean all the way back, thrust your feet out, spread your arms, and try to relax. If you bend or panic you'll sink. Don't be afraid to try it, I'm right here if you start to sink." Dende nodded tentatively and tried again, the water swirling all around him. This time Neru put a hand under Dende's back when he started to sink, keeping his face above water. He pushed the child's back into a straight position, and smiled reassuringly at Dende. Dende looked a bit scared, but Neru calmed him down, saying gently, "Don't worry, I won't let you sink, nothing's going to happen… just relax." Dende nodded ever so slightly, and closed his eyes, concentrating on doing what Neru had told him. Noting that Dende was doing it correctly, he slowly removed his hand from Dende's back and watched the child float lazily.

"Dende…" He whispered, not wanting to startle the child, "You're doing it all by yourself…" Dende's eyes shot open, and he gasped,

"Really?!" Before he dropped underwater, emerging a moment later, coughing and sputtering once more, his antennae drooped over his eyes, saturated with water. He sighed, discouraged. Neru rocked his head towards the shore.

"Wanna take a break, Dende?" Dende nodded and began paddling over towards the shore Karacol and Kargo were on. Karacol had stopped his training for now and was trying to teach the one and a half-year-old to skip stones along the water. He stopped the lesson for a moment as Neru and Dende approached. The two of them plopped down on their backs, staring at the clouds, which had only recently appeared during the course of the lesson. A few moments later, Dende nodded off, snoring gently. Neru stared at the clouds, reminiscing on the past week's challenges, like moving Dende's bed into his home, finding a place for the child to be comfortable. He remembered the morning ritual of getting the child a drink, that was different, and above all, finding time to train. He also thought of Karacol's increasing relationship with Kargo, and more then once he saw a remnant of his and Dende's early days within the two. He smiled then, gazing at a cloud that looked almost like the four of them, two smaller clouds symbolizing the children, seeming to look on at the two larger clouds, which looked to be he and Karacol sparring.

He was interrupted by these thoughts a moment later, as Karacol sat down next to him, stretching his legs with one arm while holding the sleeping Kargo in the other. Neru glanced at him as he cocked his head and looked at the sleeping Dende. He chuckled softly.

"Guess the lesson's over, eh Neru?" Neru nodded slightly. The time was right to say something he had forgotten to tell his stu- no, his friend.

"I apologize for being so rude to you in the past, Karacol. I wasn't in control of myself, and in my urge to keep Dende safe, I never noticed how lonely you really were." Karacol shook his head.

"Don't worry about it Neru, that was in the past. Besides, you two were always with me, we were all just… misguided." He smiled. "Besides, I don't think I'd ever be as good at joking around if it wasn't for you guys…" Neru rolled his eyes.

"Next time one of your jokes saves Nameksei, be sure to let me know, okay?" Neru said sarcastically, letting some of his own humor seep in. Karacol ignored the rib and grinned ear to ear.

"We'd better get back, Neru, Muuri might be worried." Neru nodded, walking over and picking up his vest, putting it on. He considered throwing Dende his robe, but the child looked so tired… He slung the robe over his shoulder and picked Dende up lightly, letting him settle in his arms. Kargo nestled against Karacol's chest, still sleeping peacefully. A moment later they were gone, flying not only towards Muuri's village, but also towards the future. They had no idea how it would turn out, but both of them resolved to be ready for it. That was the best the two warriors' could do, after all. They had little idea of how cruel the future was going to be…

Ideo shivered, trying to reassure himself. It wasn't the room's temperature, which was pleasantly warm, regulated by perfect environmental controls so precise that it took five technicians to maintain. The air in the room was pure, a reassurance to almost all oxygen breathing races, especially with the difficulty that normal air pressure was maintained on a type-9 planet. Various relics, many taken from the civilizations that had been completely destroyed by the planet's owner, decorated the room. Ideo shuddered again, clad in a fresh fighting jacket and clothes. It wasn't the environment at all, it was at the prospect of having to attend an audience with _him_. Lord Freezer, the most powerful being in the universe, had demanded an audience with him. He wouldn't have been so unnerved if he didn't believe he had failed. It was simple. Most people who accomplished missions correctly for their lord came out from their audiences intact, and most that didn't… were recycled a few hours later.

He wished that he hadn't been reduced to waiting, but he would have killed a thousand soldiers, slaughtered his family, and been beaten to within an inch of his life rather then risk being late. He glanced down past his feet, staring at the velvety, greenish blue carpet. The color did not reassure him, as he realized with a start that it was the same color as his blood. He pondered if it was a coincidence or not.

"Don't think about that! Think about what you're going to say!"

A moment later, in front of him at the back of the room, a shaft of light pierced the dim surroundings, growing wider until the door completely opened, with three shadowy figures standing, illuminated by the light but too hard to make out. It didn't matter, as he dropped to one knee instantly, thrusting his left palm out in a fluid motion, Freezer's salute. They could only be three people. The figure on the left was as huge and powerfully built as Smetllack had been, maybe even bigger. He was certainly more terrifying. This was Dodoria the destroyer, who was Freezer's third in command and was renowned for his tales of having eliminated five populations in one day. His arms were crossed over his deep purple and black fighting uniform, and he did not look pleased. The one on the right stood protectively in front of Freezer. This was Zarbon, his pale blue skin and flowing green hair seeming to reflect an aura of confidence. He also wore a fighting jacket, but he let his arms hang at his sides. Ideo wasn't quite so terrified of him. It wasn't because of his appearance, which wasn't as frightening, it was because of his personality. Follow orders with Zarbon, and even if you failed, you had a chance of surviving. With the other two, failure typically meant death. He focused on the figure in the center, sitting in a compact, black chair, which was humming ever so slightly. Hovering about two feet off the ground was Freezer, the most terrifying one of them all.

"It's almost hard to believe he's the strongest being in the universe, he's so sho-" He stopped thinking with a gasp. What if Freezer was telepathic? He forced himself only to think of his loyalty to the three of them. He hoped they hadn't noticed his shock. All three of them were leering coldly at him, but he felt absolutely no urge to smile back. Dodoria's grin rapidly diminished into a frown, and Ideo cringed. He had already been informed that Smetllack was missing, and though he held no respect for his underling, he had been appalled at the thought that something could manage to happen to someone of his race. He glanced back at Freezer and almost forgot to breathe, taking in the frightening, tight black lips, and the cold, calculating eyes that seemed to burn into his soul and mind. A moment later, Zarbon's expression changed as well as he regarded Ideo, not even saying a greeting.

"Make your report." Ideo tensed, swallowed, and began.

"Y…y… yes, my lords. Smetllack and I cleared planet 1137 of all sentient life, but in the battle our squad was lost, and our ship was badly damaged. We drifted for two weeks before we managed to get the engines to expel even a 10% amount of thrust. We had little air left and desperately needed repairs, so we landed on one of the planet's on our "ignore" list. Our records stated that its inhabitants had once been capable of space travel, before their planet went through an ecological disaster, killing most of the population. There were only about a hundred or so people living on the planet, and they should have been easy to destroy, but…"

"But what?" Dodoria interrupted, his voice lined with anger. Ideo shrank back, sweat beginning to trickle down his face. Zarbon glared, and the only being with an unchanged look was Freezer, who smiled, letting his lieutenants do their jobs.

"We… we… we had managed to partially repair the engines, when a child arrived. We saw fit to eliminate the child so that our position would not be given away, but when we attacked the child, an adult intervened. His power level was only 15,000, which isn't even as strong as my own, but he was a talented fighter, and he took us by surprise, enabling the child to escape while we dealt with this threat. He was badly hurt, and Smetllack was about to kill him when another adult arrived, whom I'm guessing was sent by the child that got away. He… he… he defeated me with one kick, and his speed matched his force! His power level must have been enormous compared to ours! My scouter had been broken with his initial blow, but I'd have estimated his ability at… at… anywhere from 30,000 to 35,000! I could only watch the battle as he defeated Smetllack with a flurry of blows… my superior didn't even lay a hand on him!

Dodoria slammed a fist down on the table next to him, his eyes bulging with anger.

"Did he kill him? Where were you?!" He screamed, a vein in his pasty pink forehead pulsing.

"I… I… I thought it would be more beneficial if I returned and alerted you of this strong individual!" Ideo gulped.

"You ran?!" Dodoria snarled.

"Y… Y… yes…" Ideo hung his head, admitting the fact. Dodoria raised a hand to surely end his existence when Freezer held up a hand, a command for him to stop. He smiled as gently as he could muster at Ideo, feigning compassion.

"Ideo, you poor soul. Don't be afraid. _I _would never dream of harming such a loyal servant. I understand that we're not ALL as strong as I am…" Freezer's face fell compassionately. "Just our lot in life I guess… You did the right thing to leave Smetllack there all by himself. After all, the only people one should look out for are themselves, you know? Now please, do not worry, you haven't angered me in the least." Zarbon chuckled slightly, but Ideo ignored him and swallowed his dignity. Inside, he was happy, because it appeared he might escape this audience with his life. He nodded meekly, trying his best to look like a child cowering before their over-oppressive parent.

"Th…that's my report, m'lord. May I take my leave now?" He requested. Freezer nodded, waving a hand in dismissal. Ideo turned around and started to stride away, grinning to himself as he admired a beautifully angled rock carving.

"I've done it! I've survived my audience with Freezer!" He thought merrily.

That was when the world slowed down, as he felt his body go completely numb. His vision began to swirl, and he realized he was falling towards the floor, but couldn't hold his hands out to catch himself. A sharp crack echoed in his ears as his forehead struck the carpet with a thud, his vision rolling. He soon noticed that his peripheral vision was dimming, and he began to feel light headed as his vision rolled, spinning dizzily across the room. He tried subconsciously to breathe, but couldn't even gasp or gurgle. Something was very wrong. Then, a moment later, as his rolling vision slowed down, he realized that in front of him, although a large mass was obscuring his vision, Freezer, Zarbon, and Dodoria were all grinning at him, the latter's arm outstretched in a slicing motion. He tried vainly to focus. What was this large thing obscuring his vision, and why was he getting so weak? Why couldn't he move? As these thoughts registered in his mind, he began to panic, but couldn't scream. He grew even dizzier, and tried to focus on the thing obscuring his vision. His final conscious thought was that he was staring at his own, decapitated body.

Zarbon glanced at Freezer and Dodoria, his grin rapidly diminishing. The two continued to smile, staring at Ideo's prone body, the neck of which continued to ooze gore onto the blue and green carpet, discoloring it slightly but almost blending in. Dodoria chuckled slightly, pleased with the handiwork his slicing ki beam had done. Zarbon smiled again, a hint of a jest in his tone as he regarded Dodoria.

"Did you have to be so messy?" He asked. Dodoria said nothing, while Freezer laughed at his joke. Freezer's strange voice spoke next.

"Dodoria, would you be so kind as to send for someone to clean up the mess this coward left behind?" The lumbering alien nodded, walking down towards the other door. He stopped and smiled evilly, observing the glazed, dead eyes and shocked expression on Ideo's face. A moment later, he booted the diminutive alien's head across the room, before turning again and walking out the rest of the way. Zarbon glanced at Freezer questioningly, and Freezer smiled. He liked Zarbon because he was the only person with enough guts to question him. He was obviously using some restraint when asking them, but that didn't change the fact that he was the only person brave enough, or insane enough to do so.

"Are you sure that was wise, m'lord?" Freezer turned and glanced at him sternly.

"What do you mean, Zarbon?" Zarbon looked over at Ideo's decapitated body.

"Well, the planet that Ideo and Smetllack visited DID have a high-level fighter there. Perhaps it would be worth conquering, if only to remove the threat." Freezer shook his head.

"It's a worthless planet, Zarbon. No one wants to buy a planet in a trinary solar system with a history of ecological disasters. It's not worth the effort. Besides, what could there be of value on a backwater world like that?"

Zarbon didn't argue with his master's wisdom. He was probably letting his own fears get to him, since a power level of 35,000 rivaled that of his own. Master Freezer was many times stronger then that. Clearly, Freezer had nothing to fear. The alien spun around in his chair and gazed out into space, as Zarbon turned alongside him and stood loyally. Freezer regarded the stars, and the planets so tiny that they couldn't even be seen, the way a cat stares at a mouse. Freezer was the strongest being in the universe, and it would all be his, someday. Zarbon put the final thoughts of the planet Smetllack had died on out of his mind, trusting his leader's judgement. They had no idea that in the future, the planet they had spoken of would be revealed as the key to achieving Freezer's ultimate wish…

THE END…for now.

Whoohoo! It's done! I hope that you all enjoyed reading this story as much as I enjoyed writing it! To start this longer then normal, aftermath quote, I'd like to thank everyone who's given me feedback on it. Your letters and messages really really helped! As far as this N-BF series goes, I don't know how far it might go, but I'm going to go out on a limb right now and say that there WILL be a sequel, as there are definitely a few ends to tie up…^_~ Thanks again to everyone who's helped! Feel free to comment on any of it, good or bad! Any feedback will help make the next story even better! Special thanks to Tomo-chan, Dendeshe, and Neoslash for being my top three editors, tirelessly answering my constant question, "Do you think this sucks?" I don't know what I'd do without all of you! Well, I'm done rambling, after all, there's too many story ideas to spend too much time on these comments… g'bye! And thanks again to everyone for their much-appreciated support. Not to sound modest, but I just never knew if I had it in me... ~Cremrock


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